From Friends to Parents: A Hedgehog's Wish
by Skyler-Kaiba
Summary: Sonic makes a wish on the Chaos Emeralds to see Blaze again, not knowing that it would be fulfilled. She comes to his world and the two of them hit it off right away. Strongly Sonaze. Timeline in 19 for last half of story.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Don't own the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise or any of the characters contained therein. They belong to Sega, Sonic Team, Project Sonic and all their respective owners.

A/n: Credit goes to my friend Andrew for helping me get started on this thing. The secondary couple for this fic is Knouge. They will get at least a paragraph a chapter, if not more. Depending on the length of the chapter, of course. Anyway, without further ado, let's being the Sonaze craze!

Sonic the Hedgehog

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 1: Wishing on the Chaos Emeralds and the Return of Blaze

One warm summer day on Mobius, Sonic was doing his usual, just out running around for the heck of it with really no destination in mind. When he reached a certain spot on Angel Island, his mind wandered and he found himself thinking of Blaze the Cat. He hadn't seen the lavendar feline for ages, it felt like. What was she up to now? Did she miss him as much as he missed her?

Seeing the shiny and newly-reformed Master Emerald in the distance, he decided he'd gather up the Chaos Emeralds and try wishing on them to see if they had the power to bring her here. Even if it didn't work, at least she might get some impression from the Sol Emeralds that he was thinking of her and feeling lonely. It took him a few days, but he got them all and set them on the steps to the alter. He muttered, "Chaos Emeralds...please hear my cry! I miss my friend Blaze and really wish that I could see her again! I wish for you to bring me Blaze the Cat!"

The Chaos Emeralds glowed, as did the Master Emerald, as if to answer Sonic's plea. A moment later, the glow on the gems increased, showing that they were attempting to fulfill Sonic's wish. The glow got too bright for Knuckles and he blacked out. Sonic stayed conscious for a few more seconds, then blacked out from it as well. He woke up a short while later, to see Blaze standing in front of the Master Emerald looking rather confused. "What just happened?"

Sonic smiled and raced over to Blaze, "Hey, Blaze! I just brought you here by wishing on the Chaos Emeralds, that's what happened." He hugged her in a friendly way, overjoyed to see the one girl who understood him.

Blaze smiled back and nodded, "Oh, I see." She smirked and asked, "Missed me that much, huh?"

Sonic blushed, "Well, yeah. I mean, it's been a while and I was kinda wondering what you were up to. Umm...anyway, let me show you around."

Blaze giggled at his blushing and answered, "Okay, sure." She noticed Knuckles waking up in the background and narrowed her golden eyes, "Who is that? He's not an enemy, is he?"

Sonic responded, "Oh, no, that's Knuckles. He's a pal of mine. We're on Angel Island right now, but I'll show you the rest of Mobius. It's an awesome place!" He took her hand and began running, talking overly fast and everything because he was so excited and glad to see her.

As Sonic was showing Blaze around, Rouge wandered up and asked, "Hey, Sonic, have you seen—oh, who's this?"

Sonic replied, "This is Blaze, Rouge. I met her when I got taken to that other dimension. She's a friend of mine."

Rouge smirked, "You're probably more than friends, huh?"

Blaze replied, "No, we're just friends. At least...for now." She blushed as she said the last part a little more quietly.

Rouge nodded, "Okay, that's fine. I'm not gonna be nosy, just asking. So, Sonic, what are you up to right now?"  
>Sonic answered her, "I'm giving Blaze a tour of Mobius. Later on, she can meet everybody." He looked at Blaze a bit sheepishly, "Eh, if that's all right with you."<p>

Blaze giggled and nodded, "It's fine. I'm sure all your friends are interesting. I do remember Tails. He was quite a...fascinating guy. If you call being obsessed with mechanical things fascinating...hmm, who are the rest of your friends again, aside from Knuckles and Tails?" She hadn't really forgotten. She just needed to hear their names and she would probably remember.

Sonic added, "Oh, right. Let's see...there's Amy, Cream, the Chaotix, Vanilla, and Shadow. Although, I don't know if _he_ would call me _his _friend or not. But eh, I didn't say he had to like me back." He shrugged.

Blaze smiled, "Ahh, yes, Cream and Vanilla. I remember them. But...who is Amy, and the Chaotix? And Shadow?" She looked curiously at Sonic, wondering how he could have gained so many friends over the time she had been gone.

As the two friends made their way onto the mainland, Sonic explained, "Amy is a pink hedgehog who wears a red dress and is obsessed with me. She wants to date me, but frankly, I want nothing to do with her in that way. I run away from her, but she just keeps coming back." He sighed and shook his head, "It's getting really annoying too. I wish she'd take the hint and leave me alone."

Blaze couldn't help but feel relief in her heart at the mention that Sonic wasn't interested in the girl that obviously had very strong feelings for him. She nodded and said, "And what about the others?"

Sonic continued to explain his friends to Blaze as they made their way to Station Square. Once they reached the city, he told her, "Oh, this is Station Square, one of the biggest cities on Mobius. I know it's not much to look at, but it's still pretty cool. Don't you think?"

Blaze nodded, "It is a rather interesting city. Will you take me to your friends now?"

Sonic replied, "Oh, sure. Come on then." He took her by the hand and led her to the outskirts of town, where most of his friends lived. Today, he was going to tell Amy off, even if it meant they wouldn't be friends. He'd rather have nothing to do with her then having her thinking that by being his friend, she would be able to get a chance at being his girlfriend.

If being with Sally Acorn for the short time he had taught him anything, it was that girls often wanted to be 'friends' with boys just to try and take things further. The humiliation of the breakup with Sally taught him that girls would go to any lengths to try and get what they wanted. And there were a lot of things that Amy and Sally had in common, such as the vicious temper. There was also the fact that both girls could and would go out of line if the situation called for it, according to them. Because of all that, he wanted a girl with a much calmer personality, one who could usually keep control of herself.

Blaze noticed that Sonic hadn't said anything for a little bit and asked, "Are you okay, Sonic? You seem sort of out of it."

Sonic replied, "Oh, I'm fine. I was just thinking a little."

Blaze smirked and told him, "Be careful, you might hurt yourself doing that."

Sonic let out a small laugh, his tension eased off by her words, "I will be. Anyway...we're almost at Amy's house."

Blaze nodded, "So are you going to tell her what you told me?"

Sonic responded, "About not being interested? Yeah, I will. If she doesn't take it well, that's not my problem." He walked up and knocked on Amy's door, then took a few steps back.

Amy, expecting Sonic to be right there, leapt out the door as if to hug him, but the space where he had been standing was empty and she said, "Hey! Why won't you let me hug you, Sonic?"

Sonic responded coolly, "I'm not in the mood for this, Ames." He turned around a moment and took a breath. He then told her, "And cool it with the chasing, all right? I'm not interested in you, and never will be."

Amy crossed her arms, leering at Blaze, "Is it because of _her_?"

Sonic responded, barely suppressing a blush, "Even if it was, why would I tell you? All you'd try to do is kill her."

Blaze narrowed her eyes, "She could try, but she wouldn't get very far. Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Amy."

Amy sighed and answered, "Yeah yeah, you too. So what are you doing right now, Sonic?"

Sonic told the pink hedgehog, "I'm showing her around Mobius and introducing her to everyone. After that...well, I guess we'll see what happens." He shrugged.

Amy nodded, "I'll follow you, if that's okay. I wanna see what competition I have."

Sonic looked confused, "Competition?"

Blaze sighed, "I believe she means me. Lay off of it, Amy. Right now, I'm not interested in Sonic that way. If it were to go beyond friendship, I probably wouldn't tell you. You've been unfair to me the whole while I've been here." She walked ahead, her temper set off by Amy's rudeness.

Sonic looked at Amy, "Way to go, Ames. You stay here." He caught up with Blaze and said, "Hey, sorry for Amy. She's not usually like that. Let's go see the others now." He said nothing else as they made their way to Tails' workshop. It would be good for Blaze to see a friendly and familiar face after that little incident.

Once they reached the workshop, Sonic walked in and said, "Hey, Tails! We've got a visitor!"

Tails came out from under the X-Tornado, where he had been making some engine modifications. Upon sitting up and seeing the lavendar cat, he smiled and said, "Oh, hi Blaze! When and how did you get here?"

Sonic explained briefly about the Emeralds, telling the young fox, "It wasn't that long ago she got here. I wished on the Chaos Emeralds and there she was. The Master Emerald pitched in too."

Tails smiled, "Wow, cool! Well, anyway...good to see you again, Blaze. How long are you staying?"  
>Blaze responded with a shrug, "I don't know...hopefully, forever...if you all don't mind."<p>

Sonic smiled at her and said, "I don't mind at all, Blaze. What about you, Tails?"

Tails answered, "Yeah, it's fine. She can stay here as long as she wants." He smiled as well. However, he thought of Amy and said, "Umm...what about Amy though? I'm sure she'd have some objection." He then noticed that Knuckles and Rouge had entered unannounced and were now making out against one of the walls. He cleared his throat and said, "Ahem! You two!"

Knuckles blushed and quickly pulled away from Rouge, saying, "Oh...umm, hello, Tails, everyone." He couldn't really explain away what he had been doing with Rouge, and he knew it.

Sonic smirked, "Looks like someone got lucky."

Rouge defended their actions, "It's not our fault you don't have the guts to make the moves on Blaze. She's obviously into you. Otherwise she wouldn't have agreed to meet us." Not caring if they watched, she resumed making out with Knuckles.

Sonic crossed his arms and sighed, "Come on, Blaze, Tails. Let's go somewhere else. Those two obviously need to be alone. And Tails, Amy can object all she wants, but Blaze is staying, so she better get used to it." He didn't like to try and be the boss of anyone, but anymore, Amy often required a firm hand.

Blaze sighed, "Enough about Amy already. That girl was rude to me, and unless she apologizes, I want nothing to do with her at this moment. Sonic, let's head to your place now, okay? I think I've had enough excitement for one day." She nodded to Tails and walked out of the room.

Tails told Sonic, "You go on home, Sonic. I'm gonna be here a while working on the X-Tornado. So, see you later."

Sonic nodded, "Okay, see you later, pal." He gave Tails the thumbs up then left the workshop, catching up with Blaze in practically no time flat. He could feel his heartbeat increase as he walked alongside her. This was a perfect moment. Peace and tranquility, and just him and Blaze taking a relaxing walk in the cool evening air. As they reached his place, he warned her, "The place is a bit of a mess."

Blaze laughed, "That's okay, Sonic. My home was always a bit of a mess too, so don't worry about it." After the blue hedgehog got the door unlocked and open, the two of them headed inside, not knowing what was going to happen next.

After a quiet evening of casual chatter and a light supper, Sonic and Blaze both got tired. Blaze yawned a bit and asked, "Sonic, do you know where a hotel or something is? I'm getting rather tired."

Sonic told her, "You don't have any money. Just stay with me, okay? And..." He blushed, not quite able to get the words out.

Blaze replied, "Oh. Thank you, Sonic. And...what? What were you going to say?"

Sonic answered, "I was wondering if you wanted to...umm, go out tomorrow night."

Blaze responded, smiling, albeit blushing also, "Yeah, sure. Sonic...thank you for wishing me here. You don't know how much I've missed you." She stood up and walked over to where he sat, sitting on his lap and kissing him.

After a few minutes, Sonic broke the kiss to breathe and said, "Wow...so, you feel this too?"  
>Blaze nodded, "Uh-huh." After taking a breath, the lavender feline asked Sonic, "So what are you gonna do about it?" She removed her glove and traced circles on his peach-colored chest, the feeling of his warm skin on hers making her purr softly.<p>

Sonic answered her quickly, "This." He kissed her deeply, then licked her bottom lip, quietly asking permission to explore her mouth with his tongue.

Happy to oblige, the lavender feline opened her mouth a small fraction and moaned as she felt his tongue prod hers. As he explored the sides of her mouth, he began to moan into the kiss, starting to get a little hard down south. Blaze also moaned, very hot and bothered from the attention lavished on her by the blue hedgehog. She was a little scared, but if they didn't go any further soon, she would go absolutely insane with need. She pulled Sonic onto the floor on top of her, telling him, "Sonic, please...I need you."

Sonic responded, his voice in a slightly husky tone because of his hard-on, "I know, Blaze...I need you to. But...I'm a virgin and I really don't know how to do this."

Blaze replied, "Well, likewise. Why don't we just try our luck and see how it goes, my sweet?" She kissed Sonic on the lips, "Even if you do hurt me, I know you didn't do it on purpose. I trust you completely."

Sonic sighed, but nodded, "Okay..." He began to finger her, just to get a sense of what was supposed to go where.

Blaze flinched at the intrusion, as she had never been touched down there. However, the pain soon subsided and she found herself moaning and bucking her hips lightly at Sonic's ministrations.

After getting a feel for what was supposed to go where, Sonic moved so that his hard-on was positioned at Blaze's hymen. He told her quietly, and with a voice steeped in lust, "You realize once we do this, there's no going back, right?"

Blaze nodded, "I know. Go ahead." She braced herself for a lot of pain. When Sonic had been fingering her earlier, he hadn't penetrated yet, he was just feeling around.

Sonic responded, "Okay, here goes." He thrust hard into Blaze, biting his finger to bear the pain of having just lost his virginity to the beautiful purple feline spread-eagled beneath him and keep from screaming.

Blaze, also having just lost her virginity, bit down on Sonic's arm to keep from screaming as well. It hurt so much at first! After a while though, the pleasure of having Sonic inside her soon overrode the pain and she sat up a bit to help Sonic go deeper.

Sonic was now in the throes of pleasure as well, the pain of losing his virginity now also gone. He thrust into Blaze repeatedly, moaning softly, "Ohhhh, Blaaaze...you're so good!"

Blaze moaned as well, her folds enjoying the feel of his member, "Oooohhhh, Sonic, you are too." She moved against him, doing her best to keep up with his quick rhythm.

Sonic continued to thrust into her, coming closer to his climax with each one. His pace picked up exponentially, but Blaze somehow managed to keep up. He gave one final thrust, penetrating deep into Blaze's warm, wet cavern, "Blaaaze!" His seed spilled into Blaze's vagina.

A few measly seconds after Sonic came, Blaze did as well, screaming, "SONIICCCC!" After she came, the lavender feline managed to push Sonic off her and told him, softly now, "You were...really good." She was panting, tired from the hot and heavy, unanticipated sex. She blushed, "...You don't regret this, do you?"

Sonic smiled, "Not a chance, Blaze. I can't think of anyone I'd rather have lost it to than you." He kissed her passionately on the lips.

Blaze kissed back with a smile on her face, then yawned and lay her head on Sonic's chest, placing her arms loosely around his middle. She soon fell asleep.

Sonic smiled, then put an arm around Blaze's shoulders and fell asleep in her embrace. It was quite a nice close to an otherwise weird day. He couldn't wait to see what their date tomorrow had in store.


	2. Chapter 2

A/n: I am sorry this is taking so long, but I want to be as detailed as possible with the story. Anyway, without further ado, here comes Chapter 2 of the Sonaze bit.

Sonic the Hedgehog

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 2: Double Date Disaster

The next morning, Sonic woke up first. Although he was still sore from the previous night's activities with Blaze, he wanted to go on the date he had told her he would take her on. Perhaps a dinner date would be best. If he got ahold of Knuckles, he could even arrange for a double-date with him and Rouge! But he would have to set everything up before Blaze woke up if he wanted to surprise her. He quickly and quietly left the room, going to find Knuckles.

While Sonic was gone, Blaze woke up and sat up in the bed. She looked around confused, wondering where he might have gone. She slowly stood up, as she was still quite sore from having sex with the blue hedgehog. She stretched a bit, then left the room and walked around the house, hoping to find Sonic within the next little while.

After a bit, Sonic came back, and literally ran smack into Blaze as he made his way back to the bedroom, as he hadn't known she woke up. He blinked as he stumbled and fell with his face in her lap, blushing, "Oh, sorry...umm, good morning, Blaze."

Blaze giggled at Sonic's blushing and replied, "It's okay, Sonic, don't worry about it. I'm all right. Good morning to you too." She rose to her feet and helped Sonic up too.

A moment later, Rouge the Bat knocked on Sonic's door, coming over to take Blaze shopping for an outfit. Sonic opened the door and said, "Oh, hi Rouge. What's up?"

Rouge told him, "Nothing much, blue boy, just wanted to ask Blaze something."

Blaze looked at Rouge and asked, "Okay...but who are you?"

Rouge nodded, "Oh, right. I'm Rouge the Bat. Did you want to go shopping with me, Blaze? I've got a hot date tonight, and I need something different than what I have on."

Blaze replied, "Oh...uh, sure, I guess."

Rouge and Blaze left the room and went to the clothing store, to pick out clothes for Rouge (and Blaze, although she didn't know it at the time). Once they got there, Blaze told Rouge, "Can you hurry it up? I want to spend more time with Sonic."

Rouge told her, "Oh, don't be silly, Blaze. We're gonna shop for you too. It's only fair since I insisted you come along."

Blaze sighed, "Fine, let's shop some then."

After going through quite a few outfits, Blaze found some clothes that she liked, a simple collared blue halter and a black skirt. She went into the fitting room and took off her usual clothes, putting on the outfit that she had chosen. She walked out to show it to Rouge, wanting someone else's opinion. She asked, "Rouge...how does this look?"

Rouge responded, "It looks great, Blaze. You should definitely wear that for Sonic sometime. He'd be all over you."

Blaze replied, "...That's good. Okay, I guess I'll wear it for him tonight. We planned on going out tonight, so I'll wear it then." She went back into the fitting room, changed back into what she had been wearing, and added, "Okay, let's go, Rouge. I've got some new clothes now. Are you happy?"

Rouge nodded, "Good idea, but I'm not quite done." She got her clothes, got Blaze's opinion, changed back into her normal clothes, then told her, "okay, we can go now." She glanced at her bejeweled watch, which had been a birthday present from Knuckles, and said, "Oh, I've only got an hour until the date. Umm...Blaze, how about we go back to my place and get all prettied up? Put on make-up and all that. That way you can look your best for Sonic."

Blaze was wondering why Rouge was so determined to keep her around a little longer, but if the other girl wanted to, no harm could come of it. She nodded, "Sure, we can do that. Although, I don't know if I'll put any on."

Rouge replied, "Oh, come on, Blaze. You've got beautiful eyes. Why not play them up with a bit of eyeshadow or something? At least put that on if nothing else."

Blaze sighed, "Fine, Rouge." She was anxious about tonight. What if she and Blaze didn't finish in time for her to return for her and Sonic's date? Hopefully this wouldn't take too long.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Knuckles were doing their own form of preparation. They had bought Sonic an orange short-sleeve button down shirt, blue tie and dark gray jeans. They had also gotten Knuckles a black short-sleeve button down shirt and brown dress slacks. They were now back at Sonic's house making the arrangements with the restaurant for a table.

Knuckles, able to tell that Sonic was really into Blaze because of the way he felt about Rouge, commented, "Sonic, Blaze means a lot to you, doesn't she?"

Sonic blushed, "Well, uhh...yeah, she's really important to me." He resumed talking to the restaurant owner and soon, everything was set to go. He told Knuckles, "Okay, we've got the reservations. All we have to do is show up at the restaurant in an hour and everything will be good."

Knuckles nodded, "That's great, Sonic. Does Blaze know you set this up?"

Sonic shook his head, "No, I wanted this to be a surprise. I just hope she likes it."

Knuckles replied, "I'm sure she'll have fun being in a double date."

Sonic told Knuckles, "Yeah, it's not that. I'm just worried that she might not be comfortable."

Knuckles sighed, "Don't worry, I'm sure Rouge knows to keep things appropriate when Blaze is around. Once I said something to her, she seemed to remember me a little. Anyway, the date's going to be fine."

Sonic smiled and replied, "Yeah, I'm sure everything will be fine." After a little bit, Sonic and Knuckles left his house and headed to where the double date was.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, the two guys asked for their table and were led back to a circular table in the non-smoking section. The hostess asked, "Is this all right?"

Sonic responded, "Yes, this is fine. Did you remember my other requests?"

The hostess nodded, "I did. We'll have the flowers set up on the table within a few minutes, and the Spanish guitar will play once your ladies enter the room."

Sonic told her, "All right, thank you. You can go now." He took a seat and asked Knuckles, "You did tell Rouge the right time, didn't you? I would hate for her and Blaze to arrive late and not be able to get in."

Knuckles nodded, "Yes, I told her. Don't worry, I'm sure they're on their way by now." He smirked, "You're nervous about seeing Blaze dressed up, aren't you?"

Sonic blushed, "...Yeah, a little."

Knuckles let out a small chuckle and responded, "You'll be fine as long as you keep your eyes on her face and not her body."

Sonic looked curious and asked, "Since when did you become an expert on women?"

Knuckles told him, "I'm not an expert; I'm just telling you what I've learned from dating Rouge." He looked toward the door, kind of getting worried about Rouge despite his insistence that everything was okay. He got out his phone from his back pants pocket, glancing at the time. There were only 10 minutes until the whole date was supposed to get started. Hopefully things would go smoothly.

About 9 minutes later, Blaze and Rouge entered the dining area where Knuckles and Sonic were waiting. Rouge was dressed in a cap-sleeved green blouse, gray short skirt, and clear stilettos. Blaze was dressed in a blue halter top, black short skirt, showing off her shapely legs, and rose-colored ballet flats.

Blaze smiled and walked over to where Sonic was sitting. She sat down next to him and planted a light kiss on his cheek. She whispered in his ear, "I missed you, Sonic."

Sonic gave a small smile and responded, "I missed you too, Blaze." He pecked her on the lips, but didn't make it more than a peck since they were in a public place. That, and Rouge and Knuckles probably didn't want to see them sucking face.

After they had ordered their food and were waiting for it to be brought out, they once again talked about various things. During the conversation, Sonic said, "Yeah, and Knuckles believed him! Could you believe that?"

Blaze laughed, "Rouge, are you sure you chose the right guy? It sounds like Knuckles has an unbelievably thick skull." She was only joking, of course.

Rouge giggled, "Of course I'm sure. I wouldn't have him any other way though. He sticks to his goals like glue, and he's really devoted." She held Knuckles' hand under the table as they continued to talk about a variety of topics.

Blaze then asked randomly, "Oh, how is Tails doing?"

Sonic answered, "Oh...he's all right. He's still recovering from the mess with Cosmo, but...he'll be okay." The friends continued conversing until their food arrived.

After they got their requested food, the four of them ate in relative silence.

However, while they were eating, Blaze dropped her fork in the floor, blushing slightly as she embarrassed herself because of her thoughts about Sonic. She bent over to pick it up, but Sonic told her, "Stay put, I'll get it." He got down on the floor and picked it up, handing the fallen utensil to her as he rose to his feet. "There you go. You okay?"

Blaze answered, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little flustered...I'm not used to sitting this close to you with other people around."

Sonic replied, "It's all gonna go okay, Blaze. You'll see." He flashed his famous cocky grin and kissed her on the lips again, a quiet reassurance.

After the brief lip-lock, the two of them held hands under the table, even if only for a few seconds. They all then resumed eating. After they had finished and were about to leave, there was a loud crashing sound in the kitchen and shrill cries, probably made by the cooks. Eggman's Egg-mobile had broken through the back wall and he was now making his way to where Sonic and the others were.

He said, "Well now, what's this? Blaze the Cat has come here? Tell me then, where are the Sol Emeralds?"  
>Blaze narrowed her gold eyes, "I'm not telling you anything, Eggman."<p>

Eggman punched a few buttons in the Egg-mobile and a few robots came in from the hole in the back wall, all of them going after Blaze.

Sonic glared, not one to just stand idly by and see his friends get hurt. He defeated the robots in the blink of an eye and said, "Is that all you got, Egghead? I could do this all night." He looked at the employees, including the manager of the store, who were now cowering behind the front counter. "You guys should get out of here. This could get dangerous."

The employees nodded and quickly left the restaurant, not wanting to get hurt.

Knuckles stood near the exit, guarding the employees as they left to make sure that Eggman wouldn't try anything on the innocent bystanders.

Eggman smirked and said, "Heh, by defeating my smaller robots, you made it necessary for me to call out the big guns. Oh, Friya!"

A moment later, a large robot busted into the building, not only making the hole in the wall bigger, but also creating one in the roof.

Sonic blinked, "That is one large robot. Well, you know what they say, Blaze..."

Blaze smirked and nodded, "Yeah, the bigger they are, the harder they fall." She told him, "You ready?"

Sonic smiled, "Always."

The two of them leapt at the robot, along with Knuckles and Rouge.

They then said in unison, "We'll show you to wreck our date!" They began attacking the robot, but it smacked them down, hard.

Blaze did a backflip in the air and landed on her feet, rubbing her jaw, "Okay...this one's gonna be a little tough, but we can do this."

Sonic had landed flat on his back, his spines twinging lightly from the impact with the ground. He rose to his feet and muttered, "Yeah, we can. We've faced tougher opponents than this before so this should be a piece of cake. At least, I hope so."

Knuckles raced into the fight and began pummeling the giant robot's leg, hoping to at least weaken it so that the others could fight it easier. However, he ended up getting kicked back into Sonic, which sent them both sliding along the crowd. He growled lowly and rose to his feet again, pushing off of Sonic's stomach and gliding at the robot's head.

The robot saw him coming and swatted at him with its hand. However, Knuckles swerved in the air and soon landed on its head. He began pummeling it, an electrical crackling resulting from it. The robot shook him off eventually, but now it was going totally berserk, its programming damaged as the result of the red echidna's attack. It began crazily running around the restaurant, attempting to kill Sonic and the others.

They were dodging its almost constant attacks, but it needed to be put down before it killed civilians. Blaze told the others, "Get back. Let me try something." She formed a large circle of fire around where the robot was and made the flames as hot as she could, trying to melt it. It began to work. The robot was short-circuiting and its outer shell was melting into a pool of liquid. After a while, nothing was left of it except for a grayish pool of liquid and she smirked, "What was that about having trouble?"

Rouge smirked, "Sonic, you know how to pick them. This girl can kick some serious ass." She high-fived Knuckles for his efforts, and also planted a kiss on his lips.

The red echidna blushed and said, "Yes well...it's only thanks to Blaze's quick thinking that we beat this thing. Anyway...what now?"

Blaze, tired from using so much power, swooned on her feet and nearly fell to the floor.

Sonic caught her in his arms and said, "Whoa, Blaze. Easy does all right?"

Blaze nodded, "I'll be all right. I've...just never had to use so much power at once before. Just a little light-headed. It's fine."

Before they could regroup after the fight, Eggman made a last-ditch effort to get to Sonic and used a claw-like mechanism to grab Blaze under her arms and attempted to pull her away from him. He had perceived how close they were the first time he had seen them together, and wanted to take advantage of the fact that the blue blur cared so much for her.

However, Sonic held onto Blaze as tight as he could, not wanting to risk being painfully parted from her a third time. He shouted, "Let her go, Eggman!" He could feel his grip on her hands slipping.

Knuckles and Rouge attempted to go and help. Rouge pushed forward on Eggman's Egg-mobile, while Knuckles pulled on Sonic. Hopefully their efforts would be rewarded.

However, it was not to be, as Eggman pushed a few buttons on the Egg-mobile and Rouge received a nasty shock, falling to the ground with a yelp. She shook her fist at Eggman, frustrated and angry with him not only for interrupting her double-date with the echidna of her dreams, but also that he would go to such lengths to beat Sonic as to cause him heartache.

Eggman said, "I can't have you interfering with my plans, Rouge. Even if you did work for me at one time. I'm taking this girl and going."

Blaze was trying to get herself free as well, squirming in the grasp of the claw and attempting to melt it. However, it seemed the claw was coated with some kind of fireproof substance and she let out a sigh. She shouted, "Sonic, please..."

A moment later, Eggman turned up the power on the electrical field that had shocked Rouge and ran it through the line that connected the grappling claw to the Egg-mobile. This shocked Blaze, Sonic, and Knuckles, causing Blaze and Sonic to scream in pain and Knuckles to gasp and let go of the blue hedgehog.

However, Sonic had not let go of Blaze. He was still holding onto her leg, firmly grasping it at the ankle. He wasn't giving her up so easily, "Eggman, you'll have to do better than that if you wanna try and take Blaze from me."

Eggman smirked, "That can be arranged." He fired a powerful beam of some sort at Sonic, hitting the blue blur in the stomach, where he was already sore from the collision with Knuckles earlier on.

The sudden hit in a still-tender area caused Sonic to fall to one knee and lose his grip and he cried out, "Blaze!" He clenched his hands into tight fists as tears filled his eyes.

Blaze's eyes brimmed with tears as well and she screamed, "Sonic!" Seeing him hurting so badly was hard for her. She hated seeing him like that, for he was usually quite strong. She managed to get an arm free and reached towards Sonic, as if to try and ease his pain.

Sonic pushed himself to his feet, ignoring the protests his tired body was giving him, and reached for her as well, "Noooo! Blaze!" He then spin dashed and hit the Egg-mobile, trying to shake her free. However, because of the durable material of the Egg-mobile, it was ineffective and all he succeeded in doing was making himself hurt worse.

Blaze could tell that Sonic was panicking and shouted at him, "Sonic, calm down! I'll be okay!" She winked at him, already hatching a plan to escape once she reached Eggman's base.

The small wink was enough to get Sonic to calm down and he nodded, "Okay...but no dying on me." His wounds and exhaustion began to catch up with him and he dropped to one knee.

Knuckles told Sonic, helping him to his feet, "Come on, let's go home."

Sonic nodded, "Sounds like a plan. I hope...Blaze will be okay."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/n: Thanks to my friend Andrew for his contributions to this story. I may not have gotten as far as I have without his input. :)

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 3: Empowering Love

Once Sonic and the others regrouped, the blue hedgehog told his friends, "You guys go on back to the workshop. I'm gonna go rescue Blaze."

Knuckles responded, "That could be dangerous, Sonic. Do you want us to go with you?"

Rouge nodded, "Knucklehead here's right, Sonic. Eggman's probably got all kinds of security around his base. Might be dangerous to try it by yourself."

Sonic smiled, "Thanks for worrying about me, but I'm okay." He gave them a thumbs up, "Besides, Blaze seemed to be already thinking up an escape plan when Eggman was taking her away. I'm sure she'll find a way to cook Egghead sunny-side up. See you guys later." The blue blur ran off, never one to put his friends in danger when he thought it was something he could handle alone.

As the blue hedgehog got closer to the base, he heard a soft rustle in the trees and turned his head, wondering who was following him. He asked, "Hello?"

A moment later, a certain ebony and crimson hedgehog jumped down and said, "Sonic, what brings you all the way out here?"

Sonic answered, "I'm here to rescue Blaze, and you'd better not try to get in my way." He narrowed his emerald eyes, ready to fight Shadow if that was what it took to get to the one he loved more than life itself.

Shadow sighed, "I will not get in your way, Sonic. I just wanted to know what was going on. Now then, if you want my help, I can provide that, but..."

Sonic shook his head, "I got this one, Shadow. You just go back to whatever you were doing before we ran into each other."

Shadow sighed, "Sonic, Eggman will have armies and robots waiting for you. If you want to get to Blaze, you will probably need help fighting them. It would be better for Blaze if you accept my help. Or would you rather get beat up and then show up at where she is all bruised and injured?" He smirked and crossed his arms.

Sonic replied, "Fine, come and help. Just let me be the one to free her, okay?" He didn't say anymore as the two hedgehogs came upon Eggman's base. He told Shadow softly, just in case, "So, what's your plan then, Shadow?"

Shadow answered, "We should split up. We can take more robots down that way and are more likely to find your friend. From what I heard earlier, she is more than that to you though."

Sonic blushed, "Yeah well, what does it matter to you? Anyway, let's head in." He turned and went into the base, being careful not to trigger any alarms.

Shadow entered from the other side.

-Blaze P.O.V.-

What a day...first, my date with Sonic gets crashed by that fool, Eggman, and now I'm his prisoner. He doesn't check on me very often. He's asked me about the Sol Emeralds a few times, but I've not breathed a word. I would never willingly do anything to place my world in danger. As my eyes move up and down the wall of my cell, I find a small crack in the wall. Unfortunately, there isn't much I can do to take advantage of that structural flaw.

Eggman has bound my hands with special power-suppressing cuffs, so I can't use my firepower. If I could just move a little closer to that crack though, I might be able to kick it or something, but there's no telling from here what good it will do. As I continue to search for a way out, I hear a faint voice in the cell nearby. Apparently, I'm not Eggman's only prisoner. Curious about my cellmate, I ask, "Hello? Who is it?"

A young racoon...wait, that's Marine! But, how did she get here? Did she arrive when I did? How did Eggman take her prisoner? Marine answers me, smiling and encouraged at my presence, "Blaze! You're okay! When you disappeared, I got worried. The next thing I knew though, I was here too. Is there anyway to get back?"

I shake my head, pretty certain that we'll be stuck here in Sonic's world for a while now. I ask her, "What exactly happened that Eggman was able to take you prisoner?"  
>Marine answered, "The jerk said he found me unconscious on Angel Island."<p>

I am even more confused now...that's where I arrived. How could I not have noticed her? Oh well, we have other things to worry about right now. I tell Marine, "We have to get out of here, Marine. Sonic's hurt because of me and I need to know he's okay."

Marine smirks at me and answers, "You got quite the feelings for that blue guy, eh?"

I blush and nod, not wanting to lie to the girl who had helped Sonic before.

Marine smiles and nods to me, telling me, "Don't ya worry your pretty lil head, Blaze. I got my own plans for bustin' outta this place." After looking her own cell up and down, she finds a small hole underneath the door of her cell and begins to dig. Ordinarily, she wouldn't resort to this, but evidently seeing me so miserable at being away from Sonic is motivating her to push the envelope. She gets out and makes her way over to my cell.

I tell her, "I can't use my powers right now, Marine. The Eggman put power-suppressing cuffs on my arms. Otherwise, I'd have been well on my way out by now."

She nods to me and searches my cell for anything out of place. She sees the crack in the back wall and tells me to move. I follow her instruction and move aside. She kicks the wall hard quite a few times before a whole section of it collapses. She then turns to me, "Come on, lassy. We gots ta getcha out of here and back to yer man!"

I blush at what she says, embarrassed that she is calling Sonic _my _man. He tends to do what he likes, a very free-spirited hedgehog. It just so happens that he loves me. Taking the attention off of us as a couple, I tell her, "Yeah, well, never mind about that. Let's just go."

I look around the room behind my cell that was revealed upon the basic destruction of the back wall, to see if I can find a key to undo these handcuffs, but I find nothing. Marine tells me, "More than likely, the gyp has the key. Iffen he went as far as to suppress yer powas, he's not gonna make it easy for ya to get outta those." We continue to search the room and finally find a key.

Marine gets it and takes off my handcuffs. What a relief to have my hands free and feel my powers moving to them again. I tell her, "Come on, let's get out of here before the genius notices something's gone wrong." Not saying a word to one another for a moment, the two of us fan out to make our escape.

-Normal P.O.V-

As Sonic began to approach the basement of Eggman's base, thinking that the area is probably where he kept his prisoners, he hears running footsteps, soft chatter and panting. He backs up against a wall, just in case it's an enemy. When he glances around the corner, he sees that it is Blaze and Marine and gasps, surprise and relief flooding through him. At least he knew she was okay...but how had Marine...oh never mind. Trying to think about those sort of things always gave him a headache. He steps around the corner, waiting for her to get closer.

Blaze and Marine are talking when Sonic steps out, so at first, the lavender cat doesn't notice him. When she finally does though, she gasps, runs over to him,and gives him a fierce hug, relieved to see that he is okay now. She whispers, "I'm sorry you got hurt, Sonic. Are you really okay?"

Sonic gives a soft chuckle, then nods, "Yeah, I'm fine now, Blaze. We've got quite the problem though." He holds her a moment longer and gives her a small peck on the cheek, just to let her know how much he missed her and how worried he was.

Marine asks, "And what be that?"

Sonic replies, "How we're gonna get out of here without being caught."

Blaze smirks, "I don't know about you two, but I'm not afraid to fight Eggman if it comes to that." She squeezes her fist and a small flame comes out of it, just to emphasize her point.

Sonic tells her, "I'm not either. Not when I've got you by my side, Blaze." He smiles and places his arms around her waist, wanting to embrace her forever.

Marine clears her throat, "I hate to interrupt the lovey-doveyness you two got goin' on here, but we gotta go!"

Sonic and Blaze both blush, but nod and the three of them begin to make their way out of the base. However, they hit some trouble, in the form of a large robot. Sonic says, "Blaze, you and Marine keep on going. I'm sure you'll find another way out. Let me deal with the robot."

Blaze narrows her amber eyes and replies, "No way, I'm not letting you fight this thing alone. The last time you fought one this size, you almost got pounded to a pulp. I'm not letting that happen again." Her hands glow softly with fire, a sign that she was willing to fight hard to protect Sonic.

Sonic sighs, "Fine, help. Just please, don't do anything stupid. You really drained yourself last time. I was afraid I would lose you for a moment." He turned back to the robot and the two of them began to fight the robot. It was tough, but they were managing to hold their own.

During the fight, Sonic got smacked hard in the chest and sent flying back into a wall. Seeing Sonic injured by her enemy got Blaze really angry and she began to glow all over. She was becoming Burning Blaze. After transforming, she lunged at the robot and began to throw fireballs at it, determined to pay it back for the rough treatment it had given her one true love.

Seeing Blaze fighting as Burning Blaze simply to protect him, made Sonic love Blaze all the more, and gave him the motivation he needed to keep going. A short while later, Shadow teleported into the room with the Chaos Emeralds and nodded, "Go get 'em, Sonic. I'll back you up if the two of you need it." He set the gems on the ground and stepped back, to allow Sonic the fight.

Sonic closed his eyes and the Chaos Emeralds surrounded him. He became Super Sonic, driven into that form by his love for Blaze and his burning desire to protect her. He jumped into the fight and hit the robot with a Chaos Blast. He then turned to Blaze and smiled, "Thank you, Blaze."

Blaze smiled and nodded, "You're welcome. Let's finish it up, shall we?" She clasped Sonic's hand, combining her power with his and letting him know how much he mattered.

Sonic squeezed her hand and smiled back, "Sounds like a plan to me. Let's do this! CHAOS"

Blaze added her power to the attack too, "BURNING"

In perfect unison, they said, "BLAST!" A golden blast came from their conjoined hands, a combination of Sonic's Chaos power and Blaze's fire power. The robot was destroyed and blew up from the pressure of the attack.

Sonic and Blaze returned to normal. The blue hedgehog fell to the ground, the pain from the earlier attack by the robot rushing up into his chest. He let out a soft grunt and fell to his knees.

Blaze asked, "Sonic, are you okay?"

Marine was amazed by their performance. She hadn't known that combining their powers would have such a spectacular effect, or really noticed when Sonic fell. She said, "Wow, ya gotta do that more often! Le's get going, 'fore the good doctor decides to play neighbor." Noticing Sonic's pain, she frowned, "Ya overdo it or somethin' mate? Ya look like you're really hurtin'."

Sonic nodded, "Good idea, Marine. You go on ahead. Don't worry about it, I'm sure I'll be okay." He was still clutching his chest.

Blaze added, "Yeah, go on. We'll catch up."

Marine replied, "Okay, catch ya on the flipside then, mates." She walked away, still a little worried about Sonic. Because of his feelings for Blaze, and the obvious fact that she returned his feelings, she considered him like an older brother.

Blaze helped Sonic stand and they headed back to Tails' workshop, so that Sonic could rest. On the way back, Sonic stopped a moment, as if waiting for something.

Noticing that her speedy blue boyfriend had stopped, the lavender feline turned around and asked, "Sonic, do you need to rest?"

Sonic replied, "Nah, just wanted to do this." He walked over and kissed her deeply, embracing her. He obviously wanted a little alone time with her before they got back.

Blaze smiled after they broke the kiss to breathe, "Heh, you get injured in a fight and you still wanna make out? That's interesting."

Sonic shrugged, "What can I say? I like making out with you." The pain in his injured chest returned and he winced in pain.

Blaze, not liking the sight of that, turned his face so he was looking at her and kissed him again, distracting him from the pain. The two of them made out for a short while before Sonic said he really wanted to get back and rest.

They made it back to Tails' workshop in record time, and Sonic collapsed tired on his couch.

Blaze sat down on the floor in front of his head, leaning her head back to kiss him.

Sonic smiled and kissed her back lazily, to get one last kiss in before going to sleep.

They broke the kiss to breathe and Sonic fell asleep.

Tails asked, "Need I ask what happened?"

Blaze replied, "Let's just say we had a really tough battle and leave it at that, Tails."

Tails nodded, "Must've been tough. Sonic's pretty wiped out."

Blaze asked, "So, how are things going with your planes and whatnot?" She was merely trying to entertain herself while Sonic was asleep. There would be no harm in familiarizing herself a little more with his pals.

Tails responded, "Oh, it's great! I've actually upgraded the X-Tornado's engines. It can go a lot faster than it used to." He said, smiling, knowing full well that Blaze was like Sonic when it came to technical things.

Blaze nodded, "That's very good, Tails. Glad to hear you're doing so well with everything." She stifled a yawn and gently moved Sonic over so she wouldn't wake him up. She curled up next to him and lay her head on his chest, a little tired from the battle herself.

Tails added, "I'm gonna leave you two to rest now and go do more work on the piloting system and targeting systems of the X-Tornado. See ya later, Blaze."

Blaze answered sleepily, "Yeah, later." She closed her eyes and fell asleep, dreaming of a warm and happy future with Sonic.


	4. Chapter 4

A/n: I wasn't sure where to go after Chapter 3, but my friend Andrew once again helped me toss around ideas. We went through several before I finally decided on this one. So without further ado, let's start this chapter.

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 4

Omega's Past and Sweet Romance

The next morning, Sonic awoke with a yawn, glancing at Blaze, who was still asleep next to him on the couch. He smiled and kissed the top of her head. He was a little hungry, but he would wait for her to get up before getting anything to eat. Actually, breakfast with her wouldn't be so bad, especially after that draining battle. He tilted her chin up slightly and kissed her lightly on the lips to wake her up.

Blaze softly groaned in her sleep, then stirred and opened her golden eyes to see Sonic glancing down at her. She smiled and told him quietly, "Good morning."

Sonic answered, "Good morning. Do you want to go out for breakfast?"

Blaze responded, "Sure. That sounds wonderful. What did you have in mind?"

Sonic replied, "Maybe a big breakfast at my favorite diner, McRenla's. I know it's kind of expensive, but you're worth it." He kissed her on the lips again, just to show his devotion to her and how much he liked spending time with her.

Blaze answered, "Aww, Sonic. Thank you." She kissed him back, and after a steamy kiss, she pulled away and said, "I gotta get ready. Will you wait for me or do you wanna go ahead and start going that direction?"

Sonic responded, "I'll wait for you, Blaze. I could have us there in no time flat, you know." He pecked her on the cheek, then moved his arm so she could get up. After she rose to her feet, the blue hedgehog got up as well, standing beside her. He said, "Try to hurry, okay? We need to get there before 11:00."

Blaze nodded, "I know. I'll go as fast as I can." She winked at him, then went into the bathroom to shower. After she got finished, she turned off the water and changed into her usual clothes. She hadn't changed in a little bit and it felt good to be clean and have clean clothes on her body. She went back out to where Sonic was and walked over to him, "Hope you didn't get too bored waiting for me."

Sonic smiled, "Nope. I've been texting Tails, so I didn't get bored at all."

Blaze replied curiously, "Oh, what did the two of you talk about in your text conversation?"

Sonic answered, "Just something he found. Apparently, he found a piece of one of Egghead's abandoned robots. When he showed it to Shadow, he seemed to think it was something of Omega's...which might explain why I ran into him when I was coming to the guy's base to rescue you."

Blaze nodded, "That might. He could've been trying to find out Omega's past. I'm sure that even though he's a robot, it's quite interesting."

Sonic shrugged, "Maybe, but I'm not really all that interested." He kissed her on the cheek again and told her, "Anyway, let's go to McRenla's. I'm dying for some of their pancakes." He licked his lips in anticipation of the consumption of the fluffy pancakes, completed with the sweet taste of maple syrup. He picked Blaze up bridal-style and raced to the restaurant, anxious to see if she would like their pancakes as much as he had when he first eaten there with the guys one morning. When they reached the restaurant, he set the lavender feline on the ground and said, "Let's find a place to sit." He walked around a bit and found a booth in the back that was free. It was his favorite spot to sit, as he couldn't draw too much attention back there.

Blaze nodded, "Okay, so...now that we're here, what do you usually get?"

Sonic answered, "Easy, I get pancakes, a couple of chili dogs, and some apple juice. What else?"

Blaze giggled and shook her head, amused by his simple taste, "You and your chili dogs...anyay, guess I'll get some pancakes, a tuna biscuit, and orange juice. Guess we should head up to the front counter and order."

Sonic nodded, "Sounds like a plan to me."

After the couple placed their order, Sonic stayed at the counter to wait for their food, while Blaze set to getting their table ready. She got some plastic forks, straws, and napkins and headed back to their table. On her way back, an older gentleman tried to grab her ass, but she managed to move in time and glared daggers at the guy. Just warning him that he'd better keep his hands to himself if he knows what's good for him.

When she reached their booth, she set Sonic's plasticware beside hers, wanting to sit next to him because of what the elderly gentleman had tried to do. She then set the straws slightly above and to the right of where the forks were, just so they would be ready. She glanced up to see Sonic on his way back, but unfortunately, people were crowding him. Annoyed that these vicious fangirls were not leaving him alone, she pushed her way through and said, "Go back to your lives, you idiots! Sonic has better things to do than to tell you all 'No' when you ask him for a date." She pulled Sonic through the crowd with an exasperated sigh, "You deal with this _every _time you go out?"

Sonic shook his head, "No, not every time. Just every _other_ time."

Blaze rolled her eyes and let out a soft groan, annoyed at the prospect of having to peel him out of a crowd that often.

Sonic chuckled, her tone and expression amusing him, and added, "Joking, Blaze, joking. Usually people leave me alone when they see I'm on a date with someone. Today was just weird. Obviously they can't tell we're together."

Blaze smirked, "That's easily remedied." She leaned in to kiss him once he sat down, and he kissed back. Their kiss made the girls who had been following him all start crying at the same time, resulting in a ruckus. She groaned and said, "Let's eat and get out of here."

Sonic nodded, "Agreed." He consumed his food at a quick pace, then looked at Blaze, who was still finishing up her biscuit. He said, "Almost done?"

Blaze replied with a simple, though slightly muffled, "Yeah", as she still had food in her mouth when he had asked. After swallowing, she and Sonic left the restaurant and went back to his place.

They talked for a while about their lives, then began to make out.

As Sonic kissed Blaze on the neck, then softly began to nibble and suck on it, she purred, then moaned, wanting to go a little further. She bucked her hips against his lithe frame, letting him know how wet she was and how much she wanted him.

Sonic felt her wetness against his thigh and smirked, "You really want some more?"

Blaze nodded simply, letting him know that he had awakened her deepest desires.

Sonic smiled, "Sure, I'm game for that." He was also half-hard, "If you can get me going some more."

Blaze blinked, "Do you mean...?"

Sonic replied, "That's exactly what I mean. I'll let you know when I'm ready to go further." He smiled and winked at her.

Blaze blushed, but then nodded and bent down so her face was even with his package. She then took his half-hard dick into her mouth and proceeded to suck on it. She then moved her tongue up and down his length, eliciting a soft moan from the blue hedgehog. He was clearly getting more aroused. She asked, her voice creating small vibrations on his member, "Do you want me to stop?"

Sonic, even more aroused by the vibrations her voice made, answered by tackling her to the floor. He was now clearly ready to take it further.

Blaze smirked, "Guess that answers that. I'm not the only one who's ready then?"

Sonic shook his head and thrusted his hard cock into her vagina, not caring that they weren't wearing any protection. If she got pregnant, she got knocked up and that would be that.

Blaze let out a soft gasp as he entered her, then moaned as he pulled out and went back in, "Oooohhhhhhhh, Sonic, you feel so good."

Sonic answered, his voice thick with lust, "You too, Blaze." He continued to thrust in and out of the lavender feline's entrance, his pace picking up with each thrust. He was moving to a fast rhythm, which Blaze was used to at this point. As he reached his climax, he shouted Blaze's name and came inside her.

Blaze followed, orgasming as she screamed Sonic's name. After they were done, the blue hedgehog pulled out and lay down beside her. She rearranged herself so that her head was resting comfortably on his chest, purring lightly as she fell asleep for a light nap.

Sonic smiled at her and gave her a light peck on the cheek, placing his arm around her. He thought he heard a noise outside and carefully and quietly got out of Blaze's embrace to see what was going on. When he got outside, he saw an injured Shadow, minus his power rings, which was odd because he could normally handle a lot and didn't take off the power rings unless he was really serious about the fight he was engaged in. He went down to Shadow and shook him gently, asking, "Shadow...Shadow, wake up! Please, tell me what happened." He found Shadow's power rings thankfully somewhat close and slipped them onto the semi-conscious hedgehog's arms.

Shadow responded, "I was trying to find out about Omega's past when I ran into some trouble at Eggman's base. I found the computer and file they were stored in, but when I went to access it, his system booted me out and he sent robots. Loads of them. It's almost like he doesn't want me to know."

Sonic answered, "Well, Tails told me he found one of Omega's parts. Why don't you go talk to him? Maybe he found some information in that abandoned part."

Shadow nodded, "I will after a little while. I'd like to rest some before going on." He noticed a particuliar smell, the smell of sweat and cum, wafting off the blue hedgehog and asked him, "Why do you smell like that?"

Sonic blushed, "...Not that it's your business, but Blaze and I just had sex. That's probably what you smell."

Shadow sighed and shook his head, "You could never say no to a girl, Sonic. Go get yourself cleaned up. I'll be inside in a little while to crash on your couch."

Sonic nodded, "That's fine." He headed inside and went to the bathroom, taking a quick shower. When he got out, he dried off, hung the towel back up on the rack, then went into the living room. When he got in there, he saw Shadow sleeping and smirked, getting a small temptation to mark on Shadow's face while he was unaware. But, he probably wouldn't get away with it. Shadow would probably wake up in a heartbeat and stop him. He wanted to go for a run, but didn't want Blaze to worry about him, so he left her a note on the coffee table next to the couch. That way, if she woke from her nap while he was gone, she wouldn't be. He left to go for his run.

Blaze indeed wake from her nap, as did Shadow. As she entered the living room in her search for her speedy blue boyfriend, she noticed Shadow and asked with a confused expression, "Who are you? And where is Sonic?"

Shadow answered, nodding, "I am Shadow the Hedgehog, an acquaintence of Sonic. It seems he went for a run. I did not mean to read his note to you, but he left it in plain sight of everyone. Anyone could have seen that. I guess I shall be useful to him and keep you company until he gets back. I don't normally do this, but he must think very highly of you to let you have sex with him." He couldn't help but stare. Blaze was indeed attractive, but taken. He knew better than to try and claim someone else's prize. It would only lead to conflict.

Blaze looked a little miffed, but said nothing else to the black hedgehog. Hopefully Sonic would get home soon. She had noticed Shadow's roaming eyes and had a feeling that things might get out of hand if he didn't.

Sonic soon came back and noticed that Blaze seemed a bit uncomfortable. He told Shadow, "Hey, Shadow, stop staring at my girl, okay? If you want a girlfriend, find your own."

Shadow sighed, "You can relax, Sonic, I won't try to take her from you. I know better than to overstep certain boundaries." He rose to his feet, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have better things to do." He ran off, not sticking around.

Sonic replied, "Well, Blaze, now what?"

Blaze responded, "How about dinner and a movie night, here at your place?"

Sonic smiled, "Sounds great, but who's cooking? All I can make is chili and hot dogs, and of course, chili dogs."

Blaze answered, "I'll make something, Sonic. Why don't you go pick out the movies from the video rental place?"

Sonic groaned, "That would mean leaving you here all by yourself." He went up and hugged her from behind, placing his arms around her waist, as she began to dig through cabinets, looking for something to make other than chili dogs.

Blaze giggled and turned around, looking Sonic in the eye, "It won't be for long, my sweet. I'll be okay." She pecked him on the lips and turned back around, resuming her search for different types of food.

Sonic sighed, "Okay, if you say so. I'll be back." He blew her a kiss and ran out the door.

After searching for a little while, he finally found a few scary movies. He took them up to the front and the guy behind the counter said, "You sure you wanna watch these? They're kind of spooky."

Sonic answered, "That's why I got it. I'm having a dinner and movie night with my girlfriend, and I wanna do a horror film fest."

The guy smirked, "So she'll cuddle with you?"

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, exactly." After he checked out the videos, the blue hedgehog raced back home and told Blaze, "I'm here!"

Blaze smiled, "Just in time. I finished some chili dogs for you and now I'm making tuna pasta for myself. Hope that's okay with you."

Sonic licked his lips, "I'm sure the chili dogs will be extra good coming from you, Blaze." He kissed her on the lips, letting her know how much he missed her while they were apart. He told her, "I got some horror movies. Hope that's okay with you."

Blaze sighed and nodded. She didn't like the prospect of being scared out of her wits, but as long as she had Sonic around to comfort her, she would probably be okay. After finishing preparing her food, she set her pasta and Sonic's chili dogs on a tray and carried it into the living room.

Sonic pulled up a coffee table and told Blaze, "Here, set the tray there."

Blaze asked, "These horror films...are they all thrillers or are there some blood and guts ones, too? Cause...if that's the case I won't be able to eat as much of my food."

Sonic told her, "I just got thrillers. So you should be able to keep down your food." He put in the first movie and clicked off the light, the light from the TV being the only light in the room now. He grabbed a chili dog and lounged on the couch, patting the spot in front of him for Blaze to lay there.

Blaze sighed and nodded, laying at the spot where he had indicated.

During the movie, there were several times where Blaze had to cuddle up closer to Sonic, and even bury her face in his chest because she couldn't bear what was being displayed on the screen. She said, "Is the worst of it over?"

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, it is." He patted her back reassuredly, admittedly a little surprised that she was so rattled by a horror movie. It showed just how vulnerable she could be when around him. It was somewhat cute too, he had to admit. After finishing all the movies, it was easy to tell that Blaze was worn out from being so scared and she said, "Sonic, can we go to sleep now? Please..."

Sonic smirked and said in a ghastly sounding voice, "Caaan yooooou really sleep after all that?"

Blaze jumped nearly ten feet in the air, then smacked Sonic on the shoulder, "That was mean!Anyway, yeah, I'm tired from being scared out of my wits."

Sonic nodded, "Then I'll take you to bed, Blaze." He picked her up bridal-style, and carried her to the bedroom, setting her on the bed.

Blaze crashed instantly and Sonic smiled, thinking to himself, 'She's so cute when she's asleep...' He lay down next to her and put his arm around her again, bringing her closer to him, just in case she had nightmares from the movies.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Tossing around ideas with friends really helps when you're trying to write a very lengthy story like this one. Credit goes to my friend Andrew for helping me with everything to do with this story.

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 5

Dark Research

Sonic yawned as he woke up. Just curious about what his best bud, Tails, was up to, he sent him a text message that read: What's up, pal?

Tails sent one back that said, Nothing really. I'm going to Eggman's base with Shadow to get more information on Omega.

Sonic's eyes went wide and sent back: o.O; Y r u doing that?

Tails responded back: Want a break from working on X-Tornado. Talk to ya later.

Sonic sent back: Wait Tails. At least take Knuckles wit you.

Tails sent the last message saying: Fine, but u stay out of it. You need to spend more time with Blaze.

Sonic sighed and muttered, "He's right." After waking Blaze, he hugged her, kissed her deeply on the lips, and the two of them prepared to go see a play. He just hoped they would see something interesting on the way over. Otherwise, he might get bored pretty fast.

-Meanwhile with Shadow and Tails-

Shadow looked back at Tails, "Why did you come with me again?" He hadn't been sure to begin with why the young fox had come with him and wanted to clear up that point before they entered the practical war zone.

Tails replied, "To deactivate Eggman's security system and make sure he doesn't lock us out of his computer again. Tech genius, remember?"

Shadow nodded, "Right. Just be careful, Tails. This base is bound to be crawling with bots." He crept up closer to the base, being cautious and glancing over his shoulder once before nodding to Tails. The young fox had managed to get a schematic of the base and all its security systems and had rigged up a special remote that would deactivate all of them simultaneously. Getting in would be simple once he pressed that button.

Tails responded, smirking, "If I stick close to you, I should be fine, right?"

Shadow rolled his eyes and told him, "Yeah, well, you should still be careful regardless. I got overwhelmed last time I was here, and I don't think Sonic would be too happy if you went home hurt."

Tails said, "Okay, Shadow. Well, here it goes." He pressed the button on the remote, hoping that he had set it to the right frequencies. A moment later, all the security systems deactivated and Shadow gave a relieved sigh.

The two of them proceeded into the base, and as they ran down a corridor, Shadow spotted some robots and glared, his crimson eyes narrowing. He told Tails, "Stay back. I'll deal with these." He raced forward and Chaos Spear'd the lot of them. He then turned back to Tails, "Come on. We have to get to that computer room."

Tails nodded and they raced down other corridor, though it was more of Shadow racing along on his jet-powered shoes and Tails being dragged along for the ride. Although the security systems were deactivated, Eggman probably had a few cameras that were not linked to them, just in case Sonic decided to pay him a visit. As long as he outran them, Shadow wouldn't have to worry about robots swarming on their location.

They finally reached the computer room and Tails smiled, "All right, here we are." He noticed a still-active security lock that required a password to open, "Umm...oops. Looks like I missed one."

Shadow told him, "Get out of the way, I'll blast it down. It's not like it's linked to anything dangerous."

Tails looked at him, "No, Shadow. We don't know if it isn't for sure. Let me see if I can figure out this password." He bent next to the lock and took a wire from between his tails. He hooked one end of it up to the remote in his hands and the other end to the lock. Hopefully he'd be able to hack it and get the password without any problems. After doing it successfully, he nodded to Shadow and told him, "Type in the phrase: Eggman Empire."

Shadow rolled his eyes, "Predictable, but okay." He typed in the password and the door sprung open. He smirked, "Good work, Tails." He walked into the room with Tails following close behind.

Once they got inside the door, Tails found a console and went to work finding the file about Omega. He wanted to know some things about the former member of Team Dark as well. He finally found it and read what was displayed in what appeared to be Eggman's log of his creation, as well as the logs of the creation of the other E-series robots. He shouted to Shadow, "Hey, Shadow! I found it."

Shadow turned, "Oh. Nice work then." He walked over and read the log. He sighed, "I see. There were several models before Omega. That's...interesting." He then saw an icon that was a thumbnail shaped like a robot. "Hey Tails, what's that?"

Tails saw the icon and shrugged, "I don't know. I guess we'll find out. Why did you want to find out so much about Omega anyway?" He selected the icon with the mouse, but didn't click yet. He wanted to know why Shadow was so curious about his former teammate. Ordinarily, the black hedgehog would care less about others.

Shadow, after giving the matter some thought, answered, "I had the strangest feeling that he had some ulterior motive for siding with me. His interactions with Sonic were also confusing. Sometimes he acted like he wanted to kill him, others, he didn't particularly care. Let's see what this is."

Tails nodded and double-clicked the icon, opening the file. He read aloud, "E-123 series, Omega model. This robot is highly functional and quite impressive compared to its earlier counterparts. This one will not be scrapped. Does have high speeds, but nowhere near as fast as Sonic, curse it all. Speaking of Sonic, I find that when I mention him around Omega, he gets...rather abnormal. He shoots everything in sight. I guess he must have my deep loathing for that blue speed demon. He's probably just better at hiding it. I think a good thing to do would be to form some sort of special ops team to kill Sonic. Hmm...maybe throw him in there with Rouge and Shadow and find out how they do together."

Shadow glared at nothing, thoroughly annoyed and angry that he had been used as a guinea pig.

Tails felt the anger in the ebony hedgehog's gaze and told him, "Hold on, that's not all." He read some more, "It seems Omega has trouble distinguishing between Shadow and Sonic. He tried to kill Shadow shortly after I found him and brought him in. Perhaps this model is colorblind? Well, it doesn't matter. Either way, I will use him to obliterate Sonic, using any means necessary. This includes...no...no way!" He broke off, not believing what he was reading.

Shadow noticed him stop and asked, "What is it, Tails? What has you so dumbstruck?"

Tails finished what he was reading, "This includes killing Blaze the Cat if she ever shows up again. I noticed that their interactions toward each other are always more gentle. Sonic must really love this girl. She has the Sol Emeralds to boot, so it probably wouldn't hurt to try capturing her one day. I might even go so far as to kill her. Sonic's despair at seeing his beloved sprawled out dead will be worth the risk of getting killed." Remembering when he had captured the lavender feline before, the young fox glared, "He has captured Blaze before, but he's never succeeded at killing her. His readings were right though. Even when Blaze was just captured, I had never seen Sonic _that _worried about anyone, not even Sally Acorn."

Shadow sighed, "I suspected it was something like that. Let's get out of here and go warn Sonic. He and Blaze deserve to know what we found." He held some respect for Blaze, even if Sonic wasn't his favorite hedgehog in the world.

Tails nodded, "You're right. Let's get going." He was preparing to shut down the console he was using when an alarm blared and he gulped, "Uh-oh..."

Shadow cursed silently, then grabbed Tails hand, "Come on, let's go before we get company." He raced out of the room, dragging the young fox along for the ride. He just hoped that robots hadn't been sent their direction. Even if they did get out of the room, they could run into some of Eggman's creations on their way out of the base.

Unfortunately, Shadow's hopes weren't realized and he saw a large number of bots blocking the hallway to the only exit. He sighed, "We don't have time for this...if we're delayed here too long, Eggman will catch us and Sonic and Blaze will never learn the truth about Omega." He released Tails, "Tails, fly out of the base and go to Sonic's. Let him know what we found. I'll get rid of these bots."

Tails sighed, but nodded, "O-okay, Shadow. Just promise me you'll make it out of here alive."

Shadow smirked, "Alive, yes. Entirely whole, probably not." He clicked off his power rings, very serious about wiping out the robots. Even if Eggman did find him and take him hostage afterwards, at least Sonic would know what the evil genius's ultimate goal was, and Eggman would know how seriously wrong he was to take advantage of Shadow's faulty memory before.

Tails shook his head, sighing, and flew off, going to Sonic's place. He was scared, but he wasn't going to let that fear drag him down. He had to tell Blaze and Sonic, even if it meant getting himself hurt.

A moment later, a robot emerged from Eggman's base. It had managed to get away from Shadow and was now taking off after the young fox. Trying to slow him down, it shot him in the leg.

Tails yelped and fell to the ground, but grudgingly rose to his feet and went as fast as his injured leg would allow to Sonic's place. Hopefully Sonic was back from his date by now. He knocked on the front door, then fell on his good knee, panting and clutching his hurt one, "Sonic...!"

Blaze, having heard Tails' voice along with the knock, opened the door. When she saw Tails kneeling on the ground and appearing in pain, she gasped, "Tails! What happened to you?"

Tails looked up at her and replied, "A robot shot me on my way over here. He's...probably still following me." He looked behind him and saw it, his ears flattening. With his leg hurt, he wouldn't be able to run anymore. "Blaze, can you...?"

Blaze nodded, "Sure." A fire appeared in her hand and she used her powers to melt the robot. After it was gone, she looked to Tails, "What brings you here?" She helped him stand and let him use her as a support if he needed it to walk inside. He was like Sonic's little brother, so by extension, hers too.

Sonic had noticed that Blaze was taking a bit to get back in, so he went out the still-open door. He said, "Blaze, what's-? Tails...what happened to your leg?"

Tails replied, "I'll tell you when we get inside. Let's go."

Blaze nodded and the three of them headed indoors, away from the pile of grayish liquid that had once been a robot.

Once they got inside, Sonic told Tails to elevate his leg and took a look at his injury. It looked like he had a pretty nasty laser burn on his ankle. He asked, "So, what happened?"

Tails explained, "Well, Shadow and I found out about Omega...but on our way out, we got chased by some robots. He told me to go on...that he would handle them himself. I think that meant..."

Sonic nodded, "It meant he was going to take off his rings and push himself. We'll have to get him back, but that shouldn't be too hard. Now Blaze, we'll need to—ow! What is it, Tails?"

Tails had been about to tell them about what they found about Omega, but Sonic had interrupted. He said, "I wasn't done. Anyway, we found out that Omega was made with the original plan of killing you by any means necessary...which...included..." He trailed off, not sure if he should mention it now. He was scared that they would be angry with him for not having found this earlier.

Blaze sighed, "Included what, Tails? Spit it out. I'm sure we can handle whatever it is."

Tails answered, "Umm...it included killing or capturing Blaze."

Sonic sighed, "Tails...buddy...why didn't you find this earlier?"

Tails replied, "I didn't know Omega was included in that. I thought Team Dark was just randomly thrown together. It looks like he had it planned all along, though. And...his ultimate goal was to make you feel really deep despair, Sonic." He sighed, "Well, anyway...that's all I needed to say. Sorry, Sonic."

Blaze shook her head, "No one could have known. He truly is evil. I could never stand to see Sonic suffering so much for me." She sighed, "Well, Sonic, what should we do?"

Sonic replied, "We're just gonna keep on going out, Blaze. We can't stop dating just because Eggman has a target painted on us."

Shadow trudged into the room. He had managed to make it back despite being weak from overdoing it. He collapsed to the floor in a heap and said, "Exactly why the two of you should have an escort on dates. At least until we defeat him."

Blaze sighed, "But we don't know when or if we will. Wow...that really took it out of you, didn't it? Who are you suggesting we have for a bodyguard?"

Shadow responded, "Until I've recovered, Knuckles should suit just fine."

Sonic replied, "Yeah, he should. As long as he keeps his eyes off of Blaze and on the surroundings."

After they went to talk to Knuckles, Sonic and Blaze went on another date, supervised by Knuckles just to make sure Eggman wouldn't try anything. They wanted a happy and peaceful date.

The date went off without a hitch, but Shadow couldn't help feeling that this wasn't the last they would hear of Eggman.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: This chapter was written entirely by myself, with little to no help from my friend Andrew. It may be a couple chapters before we hear from Eggman again, but I wanted to get Sonic's proposal to Blaze and the wedding out of the way before adding anymore about him in there. Hope it's not a disappointment!

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 6

Promises and Rings

The next day, Sonic was the first one awake at his place. Blaze was still sleeping, and he smiled at her sleeping form. He kissed the top of her head gently before creeping quietly out of the room. He was going to buy her an engagement ring and pop the question to her at a special dinner that evening. Normally he didn't try to set plans in stone, but this was a special circumstance. He called an Italian restaurant and set the reservations. After that was done, he left Blaze a note, albeit a somewhat vague one so that she wouldn't know what he was buying her.

He reached the jewelry store and looked over a lot of designs before finally deciding on a three-stone engagement ring, but instead of the sapphires that were on the display model, the blue hedgehog asked the jeweller, "Can you give me that model, but with rubies instead of sapphires?"

The jeweller told him, "Surely I can, sir." He said, "We have some of those in the back. Is that all I can get for you today?"

Sonic responded, "Yes, sir. Thank you." He waited for the jeweller to come back with the ring and smiled and nodded, "That's the right one. Thank you, sir." He paid for the ring and left the jewellers. He called his home to check on Blaze and make sure she had gotten his note. When he heard her voice on the other end, he said, "Hey, Blaze. How is everything?"

Blaze answered, "It's fine. I saw your note. Is everything all right?" She sounded nervous, but somewhat excited too.

Sonic replied, "Yeah, everything's fine. I'm on my way home now. I should be there in a few. Talk to you then." He made a kissy sound into the phone, then hung up with her. When he reached home, he grinned as he entered and hugged and kissed Blaze passionately. He then asked, "How would you feel about a special dinner tonight, Blaze? At the new Italian place downtown?"

Blaze blinked, "That place is expensive. Are you sure it's okay?"

Sonic smiled, "Oh, trust me, it's fine."

Blaze had a feeling Sonic was keeping something from her, but it was probably for a good reason. Perhaps it was a special surprise. She knew it wasn't her birthday anytime soon, so what else could be happening? She guessed she would just see how it played out.

After an exhilerating run in the park with Sonic, the lavender feline giggled as they raced home. Sonic was clearly excited about something, as he seemed to be rushing. She asked, "Everything okay, Sonic?"

The blue hedgehog answered, "Fine, just a little excited about this evening, that's all. It's just been so long since we've had a fancy dinner date."

Blaze asked, "Why are we going to a fancy place anyway?" She eyed Sonic suspicously, letting him know that she knew something was up.

Sonic didn't want to get caught so he thought for a moment, then answered, "Well, uhh...I just, thought it would be better if we ate somewhere nice for a change. We can't do McRenla's or Chinese takeout every date. That gets boring, doesn't it? And besides, I already made the reservations."

` Blaze rolled her eyes, not believing what he was saying, "Maybe, but you really didn't have to shell out that much money to eat out with me. I'm happy with anything as long as you're with me." She decided to leave it alone. He probably had a reason for having gone that far. Hopefully she would see what it was later on.

Sonic asked, "Oh, and can you wear something really nice? Maybe that special red jacket Rouge got you for your birthday?"

Blaze sighed, "I guess so. It shows a lot of cleavage though."

Sonic replied, "You can wear a shirt under it."

Blaze responded, "All right, but only for you." She leaned over and kissed him as they ran in the door. She then asked, "What are you wearing?"

Sonic told her, "Umm, a red button down shirt, a pair of nice black slacks and my best white shoes. Why?"

Blaze answered, "Just making sure I wasn't the only one dressing up for this thing." She grinned at him, then winked and went to get ready. She even put on a little eyeshadow and blush to play up her face a bit. She hoped that this night would be well worth getting herself dolled up for. She then went back to the foyer and saw Sonic there. He had on a dark ruby dress shirt, black slacks and really nice white shoes, just like he had said. She asked him, "When did you get that?"

Sonic told her not to worry about it, and the two of them went to the restaurant. When they got there, he spoke to the hostess, telling her, "The reservation should be under the name Sonic the Hedgehog..."

The hostess found it and smiled, nodding, "Yes, your table is ready. Come on then, you two." She knew a bit of what Sonic was planning, as the manager had spoken to her and she had talked with him as well. When they reached the private dining room, Blaze asked, "Why are we alone, Sonic?"

Sonic told her, grinning, "You'll see, Blaze. All in due time." He then said, "We even get our own personal waiter for the night. Hope you didn't mind that."

Blaze smiled back, "Not at all. Thanks for everything about tonight, Sonic. I get the feeling this is something special."  
>Sonic blushed, a little embarrassed. She was catching on. He had the feeling since they had gotten home earlier that she was. He needed to propose to her quick before she asked him the inevitable question of what was going on. He indicated to the hostess to leave, and close the door behind her. He wanted to do this privately.<p>

The hostess nodded respectfully and left the room, letting them be alone.

Blaze told Sonic, "I hope the waitress doesn't take too long to get back here. I'm rather hungry from the run through the park earlier."

Sonic knew that he definitely needed to propose now before Blaze got too terribly hungry. He then sighed and told her, "Umm...Blaze...?"  
>Blaze looked at him, "Yes?"<p>

Sonic blushed, then got down on one knee, pulling a box from his back pocket, "Could you...give me your hand for a second?"  
>Blaze blushed too, a little embarrassed and confused by his actions at first. What was he doing? She then said, "Oh...sure." She held her hand out.<p>

Sonic took her hand in his free one and opened up the box. Inside was the three-stone engagement ring he had bought. He then slid the engagement ring on her finger and stuttered out, with as much feeling and warmth as he could muster, "Would you...would you marry me, Blaze the Cat?"

Blaze gasped in shock, taken aback by his sudden proposal. She then smiled and hugged him tight. She answered, "Of course, Sonic! I'd love to be your bride." She kissed him on the lips, sealing the engagement.

Sonic kissed back, then let out a chuckle when they came up to breathe, replying, "I'm supposed to be the one that does that first. Ah well, screw tradition." He then called for a waitress and their personal waitress came in, grinning. She asked him, as he had asked for her by name, "So, are congratulations in order?"  
>Sonic nodded, "She said yes, Valerie."<p>

Valerie smiled, "Then congratulations, Sonic, Blaze. What can I get for you?"

After the couple placed their order, the girl left and went to get their food.

She returned with their order and served it to them, leaving the room so the two could talk alone.

Blaze asked, "You've had that planned since this morning, haven't you? That's why you were acting so weird..."

Sonic finished the bite of chili dog with sweet n sour sauce that was in his mouth, smirked and nodded, "Yeah, you caught me. That's why. Everything okay?"

Blaze moved her chair so she was sitting next to Sonic and told him, "Yep, everything's great. Never better." She finished her food, then went to sit on his lap, feeling particularly cuddly for the moment.

Sonic smiled and put his arms around Blaze, glad to be the one to have put her in such a great mood. If the proposal dinner went this well, he could only imagine how the wedding and honeymoon night would be.

Blaze noticed that Sonic was distracted and asked, "Are you okay, Sonic? You seem a bit...distant."  
>Sonic responded, blushing as she had caught him in a moment of distraction, "Umm, yeah, fine. Just thinking about the wedding. How long of an engagement did you want? I won't force you into anything, cause I know you wouldn't like that."<p>

Blaze answered him, "Hmm, how about a year? Is that good for you?"

Sonic nodded, "That gives us a whole year to plan it. Sure."

Blaze smiled, "Great. A year it is then." She yawned, getting a little tired from everything that had happened.

Sonic told her, "Oh, looks like you're sleepy. You wanna go home and get some sleep?"

Blaze gave another hearty yawn and nodded, "Yes, please." She answered him, not wanting to fall asleep after he had gone to so much effort for a great dinner.

Sonic replied, "All right, my sweet Blaze. We'll head home then. Valerie, the check please."

Valerie nodded and brought up the bill for their food.

Sonic's emerald eyes bugged out a little when he saw how much it had cost. He slipped a currency bill into the little book that it had come in and closed it, handing it to Valerie. She took it out, rang it through the register, and brought Sonic back his change. She told him, "Have a great night, sir."

Sonic smiled, "Yeah, you too."

When Sonic and Blaze got back to the house, he took off his clothes, having gotten a little stuffy in the restaurant. He sighed, "What a great night. Did you have as great a time as I did, Blaze?"

She smiled and nodded at him as she took off her coat, exposing her shoulder blades and arms, and the aqua-colored cami she had on underneath of it, "It was a wonderful evening, Sonic. Nothing else we've done can top it." She twirled the ring on her finger and ran over and hugged him again. She then kissed him passionately on the lips.

After the kiss was broken so they could both breathe, Sonic told Blaze, "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm heading to bed. Today has been a full day and sleep sounds good."

Blaze nodded, "Yeah, for me too." She pecked him on the cheek and told him, as she walked into the bedroom, "Good night, Sonic."

Sonic smiled, "Yeah, good night." He walked into the bedroom behind her, shutting the door behind him. He lay on the bed next to Blaze and pulled her close, not wanting sex or anything, just to be close to her in sleep.

Blaze smiled as she felt her fiance's arms around her and purred, turning so that she was facing him and laying her head on his chest to listen to his heartbeat. The fast, steady rhythm of the blue hedgehog's heart lulled the lavendar feline into a deep slumber.


	7. Chapter 7

A/n: Sorry it took me so long to get up Chapter 6, but I've had a lot going on in my life lately. Anyway, without further delay, here comes Chapter 7.

Chapter 7

From Friends to Parents

The next day, Sonic woke up bright and early, creeping out of bed to get some running in before Blaze got up. As he raced through a forest, he heard the sound of Eggman's hoverchair, then sighed and shook his head, "The Egghead just doesn't know how to give up. He'll never be able to catch me." He continued running, but was a little more on his guard now. For all he knew, the plotting scientist had some sort of trap up his sleeve. He sort of wished he hadn't left Blaze alone either; for all he knew, his plans involved her somehow.

The sound of his hoverchair started to get more distant, as Eggman headed to Sonic's place, as if to test his resolve for protecting Blaze. Sonic glared and followed the sound, easily catching up to Eggman in a flash of blue light. He said, "Don't test me, Eggman. Don't think I've forgotten about what you tried before." It was the only warning he would give.

Having heard the noise of the hoverchair herself, Blaze came out of the house, still seeming half-asleep. She asked Sonic, at first not noticing Eggman, "Sonic, what's wrong? Why do you look so…angry?" She turned and saw Eggman, then narrowed her honeycomb-colored eyes, "Oh, it's you. What do you want?"

Eggman smirked, "Oh, nothing for now. Aren't I allowed to check in on everyone every now and then?"

Sonic glared, "That's not what you were doing, Egghead, and you know it. What was your real reason for wanting to come to my house?"

Eggman had something hidden in his hoverchair, a fake Emerald. He had, in fact, quite a few of them. He had nabbed them from some of the planets that the Metarex had hit while collecting planet eggs. He had used some of them to power a few of his robots, but not quite all. If he could somehow expose Sonic to the 'toxic' negative energy that the fake ones put out, the blue blur would be out of commission for a while and he could get the Chaos Emeralds and Sol Emeralds as a bonus. …If he was able to convince Blaze to tell him where they are. Of course, seeing Sonic so sickly would probably not completely cloud her judgment, but it would give her some incentive. He nabbed the fake emeralds and stuffed them in the back of his pants.

He then said, "I just wanted to leave you a little present, Sonic, that's all. Y'know, as sort of an 'I surrender' gift, you might say."

Sonic felt the negative energy emanating from his back pockets and shuddered, "What sort of present, Eggman?"

Eggman smirked. This was going perfectly. He then said, "Oh, you'll find out for yourself soon enough." He walked around them in a rather humorous manner, just to make sure that Blaze and Sonic would not see the fakes. Although, he had a feeling Sonic already knew they were there.

Sonic turned to Blaze, "I don't like this. Will you follow him and make sure he doesn't put poison in our food or something?"

Blaze nodded, "I was going to anyway. Your reaction to whatever he has makes me really suspicious of the present." She went inside and followed Eggman. She found him in the living room, planting a fake Emerald in the comfy chair Sonic used all the time. She glared and threw fire past his head, hitting the far wall. She said, "So, this was your _present_, huh? Poisoning Sonic with the negative energy of the fake Chaos Emeralds? That's _really_ nice."

Eggman glared at her, "If you say a word to Sonic, he won't be the only one suffering. I'll find the nearest lake and have my robots dump you in it, Blaze the Cat." He knew of her immense fear of water. It wouldn't be revealed as long as that threat loomed. At least, he could hope so.

Blaze gulped, but then shook her head, "No. I won't let you do this." She threw more fire at him, but before she could, his two robots, Cubot and Orbot, came into the room and knocked her down, resulting in a surprised yelp from the lavender feline. She sat up and glared at them, "Great…just what I need, distractions." She sighed and shot fire at the two bots.

Cubot let out a mechanical sound of surprise, (a whirr-esque sound) and dodged the fire, as did the red one. He said, "We will not be so easily gotten rid of, little girl." He looked at the red one, "Isn't that right?"

Orbot nodded too, "Yes, you will not get rid of us, no matter how hard you try." He then took a laser from Eggman's hoverchair and fired it at Blaze.

Blaze dodged and hissed, "You're getting on my last nerve, robot. I wouldn't do that again if I were you." She stood up to her full height and ignited fires in both of her hands. She was livid. Not only because Eggman had been trying to make Sonic ill, but also because he was trying to keep her from protecting Sonic. He meant everything to her.

Orbot smirked, "Heh, I'm not scared of you, Blaze. Maybe it's a little foolish of me, but I'm not. Probably because I know if you were put in an oceanic environment, you would panic."

Blaze growled, "Shut it!" She threw fire at the robots and Eggman again.

Eggman grabbed the robots and hit the deck, dodging her fire. He told the robots, "You idiots! Blaze is too powerful for us to take care of by ourselves! We need backup." He smirked and grabbed a controller of some sort out of his hoverchair. He added, "Which we will get in just a few moments…." He pressed the red button on the controller, then an alarm sounded from it and robots began to swarm on their location.

Blaze muttered, "This isn't good." She kept the fires ready to go and glared at Eggman, "You're such a coward. You won't even fight your own battles."

Eggman replied, "Ah, but a true combat genius knows when it's time to retreat. I just know how to pick my battles." He told her, "Have fun with the robots." He then went upstairs and planted the last few fake emeralds in Sonic's bed. After all this was accomplished, he left the house, leaving the robots for Blaze and Sonic to fight.

Sonic came in, having noticed Eggman fly out the window using the hoverchair. He noticed Blaze trying to fight a huge number of robots and quickly jumped into the fight, using a Homing Attack on most of them. He then asked, "You all right?"

Blaze nodded, "I'm fine. You?"

Sonic responded, "I'm great now that you're with me, Blaze." He grinned, then walked over to her and gave her a hug and kiss, glad that the fight was over. He just hoped Eggman hadn't left them any nasty surprises. As he went to sit in his favorite chair (Eggman hid the emerald under the cushion so he wouldn't feel it when he sat down), he started to feel…funny. Essentially the same icky feeling he had when he had when he rescued Cosmo and Chris from the Metarex. He shivered again and said, "Ugh…I don't feel so good, Blaze."

Blaze took his hand and pulled him to his feet. She added, "That's because Eggman put a fake emerald in that chair. I'm not sure where else he put them, but watch yourself."

Sonic nodded, "Don't worry, Blaze. I'll be careful." He smiled at her, then pulled her in close for another kiss. As the two made out, the blue hedgehog thought he heard a noise outside and sighed, breaking off the kiss with quite a bit of reluctance. He told Blaze, "I'll be right back, babe." He pecked her on the cheek one last time before running outside.

Once there, he saw Knuckles and Tails engaged in a fight with some robots. When had they gotten here? Shrugging, he started fighting as well, helping out his friends. He said, "You two couldn't handle it for two seconds?"

Knuckles was glad that Sonic had gotten there, but simply replied, "Geez, sor_ry_. It's not like we expected Eggman to send _this _many robots. Anyway, let's do this!"

Sonic responded, "Right." He jumped into the air and then did a Homing Attack, killing off a few more robots. He hoped that this wouldn't take too long. If it did, Blaze would start getting worried and involve herself, even if she wasn't really needed. That stood the chance of her getting hurt and he didn't want to risk that.

The fight ended abruptly when Shadow came in. He removed his power rings and finished off the robots, not wanting to chance that Blaze would get involved and get hurt. Although he would normally care less about others, Blaze was different. She was kind and warm, which somewhat reminded him of Maria. He did not want Sonic to have the same experience he did, to lose someone close to him. After the robots were gone, he panted and slipped his power rings back on, drained of energy. He said, "Are you okay?"

Sonic answered, "Uh...yeah, I'm fi—ow!" He clutched his arm, which had a cut on it that he had received while fighting. He shrugged, looking a little sheepish, "Other than the cut, I'm fine."

Blaze came running after a while, relieved to find that Sonic was okay. She had been worried that the negative energy from his brief encounter with the fake Chaos emerald would make him sick, but he seemed okay. She then noticed the wound on his arm and asked, "Sonic...you're hurt."

Sonic sighed and told her, "It's not that bad, Blaze. It's not that deep. And it's not even really bleeding that much." He felt like she was overreacting.

Tails shrugged and told him, "Even so, it could still get infected." He was the voice of reason for now, it seemed.

Blaze told Sonic, "Let me cauterize the cut with my fire, Sonic. I don't want to risk you getting sick from infection. Please?"

Sonic nodded, "Okay...it won't hurt a lot, will it?"

Blaze replied honestly, "It might sting for a minute, but you should be okay. Knuckles, hold him still while I cauterize it."

Knuckles did as she asked and held Sonic down while she cauterized the wound.

Blaze formed some fire in her hands, then turned up the heat on it a bit. After doing that, she placed the fire over the cut, leaving it there so the wound would cauterize.

Sonic let out a cry of pain as hot, searing pain shot through his arm. A moment later, the pain subsided as the cut scabbed over from the cauterization and he nodded, "It's all right now. You can stop, Blaze."

Blaze nodded and let up on the fire, panting. It had taken a lot of energy to make the fire as hot as she had. She leaned back against the trunk of the tree they were near, very worn out.

Sonic noticed and gasped, sitting by her side, "Blaze...that took a lot out of you, didn't it?"  
>Blaze replied, "Yeah, you caught me. It takes a lot of energy for me to make the fire hot enough to cauterize a wound. But...it worked and you're okay, and that's all that really matters to me." She smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder.<p>

Sonic responded, "Then let's head home and get some sleep. It's rather late after all, and you don't look so good. We could both use the rest." He picked Blaze up, surprised when she didn't seem to object to being carried. She had to be really drained to not care.

Blaze nodded, "You're right. Just please, don't let anything happen to me while I rest on the way."

Sonic smiled, "Of course not, Blaze. You're too important to me to let you get hurt. You're very precious cargo." He kissed her on the lips as he took off at his top speeds to his house. He arrived only moments later and put Blaze in bed. He then lay next to her, letting out a soft chuckle as she curled up on his left side. She always seemed to like hearing his heartbeat.

To Blaze, Sonic's heartbeat was the most beautiful sound in the universe, as it gave life to the one she truly loved more than words could express. She yawned. Not only had she used a lot of energy in essentially healing Sonic, but she had also gone through and cleaned out the fake Emeralds from their house. It had deprived her of some of her energy as well. Not only that, but she had almost gotten ill on the way to the fight because of it. Her body's reaction to the energy put out by the fake emeralds was worse than Sonic's, being that she was from a different dimension. She was just very good at hiding how uncomfortable she was. Being a princess, she had often been forced to hide her discomfort. It was second nature to her. However, as she was falling asleep, she couldn't suppress the wheeze that passed her lips.

Sonic noticed the wheeze and watched Blaze sleep with worried eyes. Was she really okay? There had to be something more to her lethargy than just having used up her energy store in trying to help him. Not wanting to wake her but wanting to know what was up, he gently shook her and asked softly, "Blaze, I'm sorry to wake you, but I need to know what's up. Why did you wheeze just now? What did you do?"

Blaze responded, half-asleep, "I...cleaned out the house of the fake Emeralds."

Sonic's eyes widened, "Blaze...you shouldn't have. That might've made you really sick!"

Blaze smiled, "Don't worry; with some sleep, I'm sure I'll be fine. Just relax, Sonic." She pecked him on the cheek then let out a yelp as she felt pain wrack her body. She trembled against her fiance, not afraid to be weak around him. With him, she felt protected, and like no one could touch her.

Sonic held her shaking and sickly body close, trying to do all he could to ease her suffering. He began to hum softly in her ear. He eventually broke out into song, knowing that it might help soothe her enough to go back to sleep. Sleep was probably really the only way to cure her ailment. He just hoped it didn't last.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Anyways, sorry it takes me so long to get things uploaded for my other stories, but I am really enjoying writing this one. The ones I plan to do this weekend are the Tales of the Abyss one, Looking to the Future and the Zelda one, Return of Zant.

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 8

The next day, Sonic woke up, to find Blaze still sleeping. She sounded like she was having trouble breathing, so he gently rubbed her chest to try and help ease her suffering. He hated seeing her so sick, since there was really nothing he could do to help except take her to a doctor. He would have to wake her up for that though and he didn't want to just yet. After a few moments though, he woke up Blaze and told her softly, "Blaze...we should get you to a doctor. You're really sick."

Blaze thought a moment, then responded grudgingly, "Yeah, okay. At this point, you probably know best." She got to her feet and told Sonic, "After we're done there, can I come back here and sleep?"

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, and hey, don't strain yourself trying to walk. I'll carry you." He picked up Blaze and ran, getting her to the doctor's as fast as his feet would go. He hoped that it wasn't anything too major wrong with Blaze. Hopefully just a little bug from being exposed to the negative energy of the fake emeralds.

After waiting for what seemed like eternity, a nurse came out of the wing where the doctor was and said, "Blaze the Cat? The doctor will see you now."

Blaze nodded and went back to see the doctor. She waited 5 minutes before he showed up and said, "So, what's wrong with me, doctor?"

The doctor replied, "We'll have to run a few tests first." He took her height, weight, etc. When he was listening to her breathe, he noticed that she wheezed a lot. He then took a small blood sample. After analyzing it, he told her, "Okay, you have a small respiratory infection, from what looks like an allergic reaction to something. With some antibiotics, you should be better in a week or two. I'll write you a prescription for them." After doing that, he handed her a slip of paper with the prescription information and said, "I'll see you in a couple weeks to see if it helped."

Blaze sighed and nodded, "Okay, thanks doc." She walked out to the waiting room, relieved to see Sonic again. She walked over and sat down next to him.

Sonic asked, "Well, what's the verdict?"

Blaze replied, "I have an infection in my lungs. The doctor put me on some medicine that's supposed to help and I'm supposed to come back in a couple weeks."

Sonic nodded, "Okay, let's go get your medicine. When we get home, you can take some and then go to bed. I'm sure he wanted you to start it right away." He picked up Blaze and ran to the drug store, so they could get her medicine and get home.

After they got the prescription filled, Sonic took Blaze home. He set her down and said, "Well, Blaze, I know you don't like being told what to do, but you should take your medicine and go to bed. I'll keep an eye on everything." He kissed her on the cheek.

Blaze smiled a bit after the kiss on the cheek. She then did what Sonic had suggested.

After a couple of weeks, Blaze went back and the doctor said all was well. She smiled and nodded, "Thanks doctor." She was so happy to be not sick anymore! She ran out into the waiting room and practically leapt into Sonic's arms. She replied, "Well, now that I'm better, I should...probably go make peace with Amy. I actually want her to be in our wedding and we should at least be civil by then, yeah?"

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, I doubt the priest would want to have a catfight take place in the middle of the ceremony."

Blaze responded, "Yeah, you're probably right. If you want to, you can go on home. I'll meet you there later, sweetie." She leaned against him and kissed him, placing her arms around his slender shoulders.

Sonic kissed back, then nodded, "Yeah, later Blaze. I'm gonna have something special for you when you get home." He went back home, planning his special surprise for when Blaze got home.

Blaze went to Amy's house and knocked on the door. She tapped her foot for a moment, then told Amy once she had opened the door, "Don't shut the door in my face, Amy, wait a moment. We need to make peace before the wedding. Sonic said he wanted you to be part of it since you're his friend, but I don't wanna do that unless you and I can get along."

Amy sighed and nodded, "Yeah, that's true. I guess...I should accept that you make Sonic happier than I've ever seen him, too. It's just...it was always my dream to be married to Sonic."

Blaze replied, "Well, dream all you want. It's not going to happen. That should be clear by now." She was a bit annoyed that the girl was being ridiculous.

Amy responded, "Yeah...it's starting to get that way. I'm sorry, Blaze. I shouldn't have acted the way I did around you earlier on. I just...I couldn't stand the fact that nothing I did made Sonic like me as more than a friend and all you did was show up and he went gaga over you. I guess...I was a little jealous."

Blaze smirked, "A _little_? I'd say a lot more than a little."

Amy giggled, "Okay, maybe more than I should've been. But now...well, now that I'm actually talking to you, I can tell you're not that bad and you might be a good match for Sonic." She smiled, in the back of her mind sort of thinking of Blaze like an older sister.

Blaze gave a relieved smile and nod, "I'm glad you realized this. But what clued you in on that?"

Amy replied, "The fact that you came all the way here to try and fix things with me. A lot of people wouldn't have bothered with that. But...I don't know what I'm gonna do now."

Blaze responded, "Do whatever feels right. I'd like to have you in my wedding party if that's all right."

Amy smiled, "Sure, I'd love to. But...we still have to get dresses and stuff. What does yours look like?"

Blaze answered, "I haven't actually been dress shopping yet. Until now, the only female friends I had were Marine and Cream."

Rouge waltzed in the open front door, then closed it behind her, unintentionally eavesdropping on their conversation. She told Blaze, "Well, they're not anymore. So...why don't Amy and I take you shopping for a wedding dress in a couple of weeks?"

Amy looked confused, "Why in a couple of weeks? Why not tonight or tomorrow?"

Rouge blushed a little, her muzzle a light pink, "Well, Knuckles and I are getting married tomorrow morning at 11:00."

Blaze responded, "...Took you long enough to tell us. What was the hold-up?"

Rouge replied, "Well, there was a little argument about whether it should be a huge, extravagant wedding or a small private ceremony. We finally compromised on having only friends attend. So...can I count on seeing you two in the morning?"

Amy smiled and nodded, "I'll be there, Rouge. How about you, Blaze?"

Blaze told her, "I'll be there...and I'll try to get Sonic to come too. He doesn't know about it yet, but I'll be seeing him tonight."

Rouge smirked and said, "Before you two know it, you'll be hearing wedding bells too."

Amy giggled, "Stop teasing her, Rouge. I've always pictured her as the type for a long engagement."

Blaze nodded, "Amy's right, Rouge. It's gonna be a couple of years."

Rouge replied, "Oh, well then we can wait a couple of years before we take you dress shopping. You don't want your wedding gown sitting and collecting dust, do you?"

Blaze shook her head, "No, I don't. Well, you two, I'd better get going. Sonic's probably at home waiting for me right now." She sighed, her mind pondering on what Sonic would have waiting for her when she got there.

Amy giggled and nodded, "We'll see you later, Blaze." She walked Blaze to the door, then turned to Rouge, "What's your wedding dress look like?"

Rouge responded, "You'll just have to find out tomorrow. Oh, and you and the rest of the girls need to wear turqouise. That's the color of my gloves. Very unoriginal, but when we were planning, that one stood out to me more than any of the others, so...please wear something that color when you come tomorrow."

Amy nodded and walked Rouge to the door as well, "Okay, I'll make sure I do and I'll tell Blaze, Cream and Vanilla too. Talk to you later, Rouge."

Rouge replied, "Okay, bye." She walked out of the house and headed back to Angel Island, to help Knuckles get the altar ready for their wedding in the morning. Not only did the altar that kept the Master Emerald safe need a major cleaning, but they needed to find a place to store the gem until it was over. She and Knuckles had a brief talk with Shadow, and he had agreed to keep it on the ARK for that short while. She just hope nothing happened to it or Shadow while they were saying their vows. Speaking of vows, on another part of Mobius, Sonic was keeping his word to Blaze and preparing something special.

The blue hedgehog had made a special dinner for the two of them. Well, not exactly hand-made. He had bought some frozen P.K. Chung's and heated it up on the stove. When it was done, he turned off the stove and set the cooked food on the table. He glanced at the clock on the wall and smiled. By now, Blaze was probably done talking to Amy and would be home within a few minutes. He grabbed some tea-light candles that he had bought a few hours before Blaze had woken up that morning and put them in the windows, then two taller ones and set them each on a base on either side of the table. He lit them as it got closer to time for Blaze to be home.

When she did get home, the lights were low, except for a few candles in the windows and two arranged on the table with one on each side. Blaze smiled and told Sonic quietly, "Good evening Sonic."

Sonic replied, "Good evening. How did everything go over at Amy's?"

Blaze smiled, "It went fine. We're like sisters now."

Sonic chuckled and nodded, "That's good. So...wanna know what I had planned for tonight?"

Blaze smirked playfully, "I have a bit of an idea." She kissed him passionately on the lips, testing out how much he wanted her.

Sonic kissed back, and once they both had to come up from the kiss to breathe, responded, "Aww, and I was trying to be so mysterious too."

Blaze giggled, "You suck at being mysterious. Leave that to Shadow." She leaned against him, kissing him on the lips once again.

Sonic told her, half-hard from her kisses, "Hurry up and eat so we can get busy."

Blaze sighed and nodded, "Okay." She ate the P.K. Chungs, and smiled, "It's really good, Sonic. I can tell you put a lot of effort into all this."

Sonic replied, "Thanks...one more thing. I want you to..." He pulled out some gold-colored lingerie that he had bought her from Wisteria's Secret, "try this on. Don't feel like you have to though. It's just something I thought would go good with what we're going to be doing..."

Blaze finished her food and her mouth dropped open at the sight of the lingerie, "...You want me to..._wear _that?"

Sonice replied, "...If it's not too much trouble."

Blaze thought a moment, then sighed and nodded, "Okay, but only for you, Sonic." She kissed him on the lips and went to put on the lingerie. When she came back, she had it on, but was blushing a little. She wasn't used to being this scantily clad, "I probably look like a cheap whore..."

Sonic smiled, "Don't be silly, you look beautiful. And the color goes great with your fur." He was also starting to get a little more...turned on at the sight of Blaze wearing so little. He approached the lavendar feline and kissed her deeply on the lips. He then nibbled on her bottom lip.

Blaze opened her mouth and their tongues battled for dominance inside. She moaned as she felt him licking the sides of her mouth. She was starting to get a bit wet. Hopefully he would notice as she leaned into the kiss more.

Sonic felt her wetness against his hip as he held her and asked huskily, his hands roaming her body,"You ready?"

Blaze nodded, "Y-yeah...let's go." She let out a soft gasp as Sonic fingered her on their way to the bedroom. She then let out a startled yelp when Sonic picked her up and started running.

Once they reached the bedroom, Sonic skidded to a halt and set her down gently on the bed, ready to get moving with this. He climbed onto the bed and started fingering Blaze again, to make sure she was good and stretched out. He asked, fighting the urge to moan as he felt her bucking against his fingers, "Are you sure?"

Blaze replied, "Yes, I'm sure. Let's get this going." She pushed him slightly and moved herself so she was on his thighs and ground against him to prove her point.

Sonic nodded, "Okay." He pushed her gently back onto the bed and thrust hard into her, eliciting a loud moan from the lavendar feline. He felt himself getting harder at her sounds of pleasure, and let out a guttural moan, expressing to her that he was just as turned on by her as she was by him. He then thrust harder and with more speed.

Blaze picked up the pace to keep up with him, moaning and grinding as they went faster and faster. She felt herself approaching orgasm and muttered, "Sonic, I'm..."

Sonic answered, "Yeah, I'm close too."

Blaze orgasmed and she screamed out, "SOOONNIIICCC!" She then collapsed onto the bed, panting and worn out. She ground against Sonic once more, trying to get him to cum as well.

The blue blur soon did and he screamed out, "BLAAAAZZZZEEE!" His seed spilled over into her and he pulled out, some of the sticky fluid leaking out onto his bed. He panted, then said with a bit of a yawn, "That...was...great."

` Blaze smiled, "I'd have to say I agree." She curled up against him, then remembered what Rouge had mentioned earlier, "Oh, Sonic, before we go to sleep, I have a question to ask you."

Sonic smiled back, basking in the afterglow of their glorious sex, "Yeah, what is it? After the great evening you gave me, I think you're entitled to a question or two."

Blaze giggled, then replied, "Rouge and Knuckles are getting married tomorrow. How would you feel about a wedding as a date tomorrow?"

Sonic chuckled, "So, they finally tied the knot, eh? Well, yeah. I like the idea of a wedding as a date. Count me in." He kissed her on the cheek, then yawned softly as he put his arm around her shoulders.

Blaze smiled, "Great. Okay, we can go to sleep now. Good night, love." She kissed him on the forehead, then curled up against his left side, her head resting against his chest. Tomorrow was sure to be an interesting day.

The next day, the two of them woke up at 9:00 AM and Blaze started freaking out, "Oh my gosh! We only have two hours until Knuckles and Rouge's wedding! What am I gonna do about a dress? Sonic, what about your tux?"

Sonic sighed and told Blaze, stifling a yawn, "Calm down, Blaze. You can go shopping with Rouge to get a nice dress for the wedding. As for me, I'll come up with something. Just take a deep breath, and relax."

Blaze took Sonic's suggestion and felt a bit better. She replied, "You're right. It's going to be fine." She felt calmer and called up Rouge. After agreeing to meet her at the beauty parlor, she kissed Sonic passionately on the lips and said, "See you at 11:00."  
>Sonic smiled, "I'll be there."<p>

After what seemed to take forever to shop for a dress, Blaze went with Rouge to the church. She smiled and said, "Rather extravagant decorations, Rouge. I hope you didn't steal any of them."

Rouge rolled her eyes, "Not funny. No, Topaz got this stuff for me. She has a sister in the decoration business."

Sonic came in. He was wearing a classic black tuxedo top and black dress shorts. He chuckled and said, "That GUN agent sure is full of surprises. So, you pulled a few strings to get this stuff, but it's still pretty snazzy. Anyway, let's get going with this wedding, shall we?"

Knuckles was already up front and crossed his arms, "Late as always, Sonic. Well, at least you made it." He smiled softly when his eyes fell on his lovely bride. She wasn't dressed in her gown yet, "What about you, my dear? Are you ready to do this?"  
>Rouge smiled back, "Of course. Just let me go put something more appropriate on." She went to the back room and changed into her bridal gown, which was a one-shoulder dress with diamonds encrusted on the back and along the bust. They had to special order hers because of her ample bosom, so she figured since they had to, why not go all the way?<p>

A moment later, Blaze came into the room and asked, "Do you need help putting on the veil?"  
>Rouge nodded, "Y-yeah...thanks."<p>

Blaze helped Rouge get the veil on, then headed back out. Once she got there, she was greeted by a kiss on the cheek from Sonic. She giggled, "Now now, Sonic. Behave yourself. We're at a wedding, after all."

Sonic replied, "I know...it's just a sweet reminder of how we're meant to be, really." He took her hand and placed it on his arm, escorting her out to the front pew of the small chapel. He then sat down beside her.

The ceremony proceeded as normal, and just as Rouge and Knuckles were sealing the deal with a kiss, Omega busted into the chapel through the back window and proceeded to shoot Sonic from behind, near the junction where his neck and shoulder came together. This elicited a surprised yelp from the hedgehog and he dropped to the floor, clutching the injury.

Rouge, Knuckles, Blaze, and Amy all noticed and glared over at Omega.

Sonic rose to his feet and said, "Hey Knux! You and Rouge can protect yourselves, right?"

Knuckles nodded, "Yeah, but...are you okay?"

Sonic answered, "I'll be fine, it's not that bad." He looked to Tails, who was hiding under a pew for cover, "Think you can shut down Omega?"

Tails replied, "Y-yeah, I can. But...what if he...?"

Sonic cut him off, "I'll protect you, Tails. You just go in there and shut him down before he...ack!" He pushed Tails aside and jumped back, a laser blast hitting where he had been just a second ago. If he had stood there much longer...

Tails nodded, "Right." He rolled underneath Omega, ending up on the other side of him. He clambered onto the back of the robot, trying to find his off switch. "Okay, let's see."

Omega noticed that Tails was on him and began to try and shake him off, "Foreign creature attached to main body. Eliminate pest." He tried hard to get the twin-tailed fox off, but the young kid just wasn't letting go. "Only one solution..." He pulled out his laser gun and shot Tails point blank in the chest, missing the heart but surely causing the young fox a lot of pain.

Knuckles gasped, "Tails!" Before he could get there though, Sonic was at the spot where Tails had landed, cradling the injured fox to his chest.

The blue blur set the injured fox down on the ground, then glared death at Omega and said, "You've just made yourself eligible for the scrap heap. Hope you're happy." He began to wail on Omega with a series of Homing Attacks and Spin Dashes. However, it wasn't enough. Despite the fact that he had several dents, Omega whacked Sonic so hard that you could hear the hedgehog's ribs crack. He fell to the ground, coughing and clutching the injured area.

Seeing Sonic so injured set something off in Blaze and she wailed on Omega like there was no tomorrow. By the time Blaze was done, Omega was nothing but a pile of red, black, white and silver goo. She sighed, "Well, that's over and done with. Oh no, Sonic!" She raced over to him.

Sonic smiled at her despite his fractured ribs and said, "Yeah...I'm still here. Oww."  
>Blaze replied, "I'm relieved of that, but...you're hurt."<p>

Knuckles said, "It's my fault. I should've jumped in to help as soon as I saw he was in trouble."

Sonic shook his head, "Not your fault, Knux. It's not anyone's. It just happened." He was starting to feel a bit dizzy from the pain and leaned his head against Blaze's shoulder, trying to get everything to stop spinning.

Blaze put her arm around him and closed her eyes, tears streaking her face as she worried about Sonic. She said, "Come on, we should get you to the hospital. Those broken ribs won't heal themselves. Well, at least...not the way they're supposed to."

Rouge nodded, "I'll fly you two. It's the least I can do after requesting you come to my wedding on such short notice...and for not noticing how truly twisted Omega was. I was on his team, I should've noticed that something was off about him. Oh well, what's done is done I guess. Blaze, if you'll get a good, firm hold on Sonic, I can take you both to the hospital now."

Blaze nodded and put her arms around Sonic's middle gingerly, taking a firm but gentle hold. She didn't want to cause him more pain.

Sonic winced, "Owww...easy, Blaze."

Blaze responded softly, "I'm sorry, Sonic, but...I have to hold onto you so that Rouge can carry both of us."

Knuckles replied, "I'm coming too, so let me carry Sonic. Rouge, you can carry Blaze."

Rouge smirked and joked, "Heh, you just can't wait for the honeymoon, Knucklehead."

Knuckles blushed, "Shut up!"

Rouge laughed, "Okay, chill out. I was only joking." She took off into the air and hovered near Blaze, then reached down, "Hold on tight, Blaze. This could be a bit tricky."

Blaze grabbed onto Rouge's hands and was lifted up in the air a moment later. She then told Knuckles, "Be gentle with him. He does have fractured ribs after all."

Knuckles nodded and carefully held onto Sonic as he jumped up, then began gliding through the air with the blue blur tucked under, his arm curled around him. The injured blue hedgehog needed to be protected from any airborne enemies they might encounter.

They thankfully reached the hospital without incident, and Sonic was admitted. After a few tests and an x-ray, the doctors confirmed that he had broken his ribs and would have to rest a lot and take some calcium supplements as well as the painkillers they gave him. They put some bandaging on him, a brace and some gauze, so that he could still bend forward and back when he needed to, but his motion would be and needed to be somewhat limited.

Sonic said, "So...what does that mean, exactly? Can I still run?"

The doctor replied, "Jog maybe, but I wouldn't try running too much. It would make your ribs hurt worse, as your heart would be literally acting like a hammer and your fractured ribs the anvil."

Blaze nodded, "So he needs to take it easy for a while. That's fine. I'll make sure he does." She glanced at Sonic for a moment, as if daring him to overexert himself.

-Time Skip#1: A month later-

Sonic gave a relieved sigh as he walked out of the x-ray room at the doctor's office. He told Blaze, "I'm healed up. I just hope that Egghead leaves us alone long enough for us to get married, Blaze." He kissed her fully on the lips.

Blaze kissed back, then once the two lovers broke the kiss to get much-needed oxygen, smirked and replied quietly, "Likewise." She kissed him again, overcome with euphoria now that he was fully healed. That would leave him free to do whatever he wanted.

Sonic smiled into the kiss, then yawned, looking at the clock on the wall. "Well, I was the last appointment. It's already 5:00 PM. You want to get some Chinese to go, then head home? I know I'm beat."

Blaze smiled, "That sounds good."  
>Sonic picked her up and ran off into the sunset, carrying her. The two of them briefly stopped at the Chinese place, got their food, then left again. It was a rather interesting meal, and they both had quite a lot to say about the day's events. After all was said and done, they cleaned up from dinner. They watched a movie, a romantic one at Blaze's request, and then went to bed.<p>

Sonic whispered in Blaze's ear, "Good night, sweet Blaze." He then kissed her on the cheek.

Blaze answered quietly, "Night, Sonic." She curled up against him, laying her head on his shoulder. She then fell asleep.

Sonic smiled and closed his eyes, looking forward to being married to Blaze one day.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I'm sorry this chapter took forever. I've been busy with other projects, but here comes the next installment.

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 9

A year later, in the morning, Sonic and Blaze both woke up to a beautiful day. They were almost through planning their wedding and had heard from Knuckles that Rouge was expecting, twins. They didn't know the genders of their babies, but had said that they would take them as they came. Boy and girl, two girls, two boys...it didn't matter. Knuckles was just happy to have someone that loved him enough to be willing to have a child that could continue his bloodline. The blue hedgehog's thoughts then began returning to his fiance, who was currently looking at him with concern. He asked, "You okay, Blaze? You look really worried about something."

Blaze told him, "It's kind of odd that Eggman would have Omega attack us, not even at our own wedding and then leave us alone for so long. I mean, Knuckles and Rouge have been married a year, they're having a kid...don't you think it strange that Eggman hasn't jumped at the opportunity to get to us with that situation?"

Sonic nodded, "It is weird, but I won't complain. It gives me peace of mind. Plus, Knuckles is really tough. He'd protect Rouge and their unborn kid at any cost." He smiled at her and put his arms around her, pulling her in close for a small hug, then added, "Just like I would protect you at any cost."

Blaze responded, "By..._any _cost, do you mean...?"

Sonic sighed and told her, "I'd rather it not come to that, but if it did, yes. I would be willing to die to keep you safe, Blaze." He tilted her chin up to look her in the eyes, then kissed her passionately on the lips. Everything felt so right when he was alone with Blaze...so peaceful. If not for Eggman, he could've sworn that Mobius was the most peaceful planet ever.

A moment later, Sonic's cell phone rang and he gave an annoyed groan as he broke the kiss with Blaze to answer it. He said, "Hello?"

Tails answered on the other end, sounding a little scared, "Sonic? Can you hurry and come to Knuckles' house? Something's wrong..."

Sonic heard the fear in Tails' voice and responded, "Easy, buddy. It's going to be okay. What's up?"

Tails replied, "Eggman sent some robots...Knuckles is protecting Rouge, but there's so many of them. Can you come and help?"

Blaze had managed to overhear and said, "I'll come and help out too. Just hang on."

Sonic nodded and told the young fox, "We're on our way over, Tails. Tell Knuckles and Rouge to hang tight."

Tails answered, "Okay, I'll them. See you two in a few minutes." He hung up the phone.

Sonic put his cell phone away and picked up Blaze, "You ready for this?"

Blaze smiled and nodded, "Let's go help our friends."

Sonic took off running, wanting to get there as fast as he could.

When the couple arrived, they got there just in time to see Knuckles get hit hard in the stomach by one of the robots.

Sonic set Blaze down and flinched as he saw this. He then jumped into the fray and hit the robot that had hit Knuckles with a Homing Attack, killing it quickly. He looked to his red echidna friend and asked, "You okay, pal?"

Knuckles nodded, "Fine. I might be a little bruised by the time we're completely finished with these things, but apart from that, I'm good." He looked to Rouge, who was standing some distance from the fight, making sure that none of the robots had gotten through and harmed her. He then asked her, "You okay, babe?"

Rouge smirked and replied, "I'm fine. You've managed to hold off most of them except for that one just now. Our kids are still perfectly fine too." She placed a hand over her swollen belly, letting out a soft gasp as she felt one of them kick in response to the feather-light touch.

Knuckles heard her and asked, "You sure everything's okay?"  
>Rouge answered, "Knuckles, everything's fine. One of the kids just wanted to remind me she was there, that's all. Nice little kick to the stomach."<p>

Knuckles smiled and placed a hand on her belly too, astonished when he felt movement under his hand. However, his distraction didn't last long as he noticed one of the robots advancing on them. He leapt away from Rouge, luring the robot away from his pregnant wife with some taunting.

He fought that robot while Sonic and Blaze took care of the rest of them.

Sonic nodded, "We got ours taken down, Knuckles. You get the robot that went after Rouge?"

Knuckles replied, "Yes, I got it. Everything's fine now. Thank you two for your help."

Sonic asked, "Where's Tails? He's the one who called us here in the first place."

Rouge answered, "Oh, we sent him away after too many of them showed up. I'm guessing he called you right after that." She walked over to Knuckles and hugged and kissed him, helping him calm down and relax after a long battle.

Sonic smiled, "We'll leave you two alone. I'm sure you've got loads to talk about."

Knuckles said, "Yeah, like names for our kids."  
>Blaze asked, "How's that going? You're expecting twins, right?"<p>

Rouge nodded, "Yes, hun, but don't be expecting fancy names from us. We'll probably just call them Patches or something."  
>Knuckles responded, "I want at least one of their names to start with K, to honor my parents' naming of me."<p>

Rouge told him, "Let's just name all our kids with a K then. That way it's easier to come up with some. You okay with that?"

Knuckles smiled, "It's fine. Let's talk about options then." He turned and waved to Sonic and Blaze as they walked out the door, then resumed discussing baby names with Rouge.

-With Sonic and Blaze-

Sonic sighed as they walked at a casual pace back to his and Blaze's place. It was such a short and pointless battle with the robots. Why hadn't Eggman sent more than that? Then again, he had been in hiding for a while...perhaps he had lost his touch. Either way, the blue hedgehog was glad of it because it meant more time to spend with Blaze. He smiled as they arrived at his favorite place, the park. He told Blaze, "You know, we could have our wedding out here in the park. A few chairs, an aisle we get set up...it'd be perfect."

Blaze smiled seductively, "Well, I'm willing to compromise with that if you're willing to compromise in other ways."

Sonic blushed and asked, "What way is that?"

Blaze told him, "We have sex the night of the rehearsal dinner instead the night of the honeymoon. No protection."

Sonic responded, "We haven't been using it consistently anyway, so no problem." He leaned over and kissed her, letting her know that he was just as ready as her for this next big step in their relationship. He was ready to be married to her and looking forward to having kids with her one day.

Blaze replied, "Great...so now that that's settled, how about we go see a movie? Or are you not up to it after that fight?"

Sonic smiled, "Oh, I'm _definitely _up to a movie date with you, Blaze. I'm always up for that." He kissed her passionately on the lips, then took her hand in his and they walked to the movie theater. After they got their tickets and popcorn, the blue hedgehog and lavender feline took a seat near the back, just so they wouldn't distract anyone else.

When the movie was about halfway over, Sonic leaned over and kissed Blaze on the lips. The lavender feline kissed back passionately and moved so that she was sitting in his lap. After the last half of the movie, Blaze asked, "So, what did you think of that, Sonic?"

Sonic nodded, "It was a really good movie. I'm glad we did this."

Blaze smiled, "Me too." She yawned and lay her head on his shoulder, worn out from the battle and movie.

Sonic kissed the top of her head and moved his fingers through her hair, subtly removing the hair tie. Once it was off, he smiled. She looked even more beautiful with her purple hair cascading down to the tips of her shoulders. He asked, "Why don't you wear your hair like this more often?"

Blaze answered, "...Cause it's a lot less of a hassle put up like that." She didn't care, since it had been Sonic to take it down. They were almost home anyways.

Once they reached home, Sonic asked Blaze, "So do you know what colors you want for the wedding?"

Blaze answered, "Oh umm...yeah, my colors are bright green and beige. Bright green for the dresses of the bridesmaids and beige for their gloves."

Sonic smiled, "Heh, nice choice. I chose gold and red. Is that all right?"

Blaze nodded, "So...gold tuxes with red bowties?"

Sonic responded, "Yep. Oh, and about the rehearsal dinner. I reserved us a room at the special Italian place where I proposed to you. Would that be okay?"

Blaze smiled, "Absolutely! They had great service. I was wondering if we were ever going back there." She yawned again and sat down on the couch, ready for another fun evening of wedding planning.

After they had finished all they were doing for the day with that, Sonic and Blaze both yawned and crashed out completely on the couch, Sonic with his arm around Blaze. Tails came in, as he had wanted to ask Sonic something, but noticed that the couple had fallen asleep. He smiled and quietly stepped out of the room, not wanting to risk waking them up. It was sure to be an interesting year next year, what with Sonic and Blaze's wedding coming up and Knuckles and Rouge having kids to raise. All in all, it was a lot to have happening...and all the while nothing from Eggman. This couldn't be a good sign for the genius. It probably meant he was planning something huge.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Yeah, it's taking a while to do any writing on this. Sorry about that, but I'm doing what I can when I can because of work and other things happening. Anyway, this chapter may have a lot more content than any of the others, as it will have the rehearsal dinner, the wedding, and the honeymoon night. If you have any questions, just send me a PM. Thanks!

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 10

Another year later, on April 8th, the evening before his and Blaze's wedding, Sonic stood outside the Italian restaurant, dressed in a green kimono top, brown dress slacks, and his Extreme Gear glasses. He had worn them to add a bit of a fun twist to the formal outfit. He was waiting for the rest of his party to arrive, kind of wondering what was taking so long.

A moment later, Knuckles walked up to him. He was wearing a green coat but had it open, black dress slacks and orange shoes. He told Sonic, "I'm glad you two are tying the knot. I saw it coming though. I haven't seen anyone so happy since Rouge and I got married."

Sonic smiled and said, "Yeah, I'm really quite happy. How are Rouge and the babies doing?"

Knuckles answered him, "Oh, they're doing good. Kotton and Kolin is what we named them. They're quite beautiful children."

Sonic chuckled and nodded, "Yeah they are. Kotton's the spitting image of you and Kolin looks a little like Rouge. But, never mind. Do you know where everyone else is?"  
>Knuckles replied, "Oh, Shadow and Silver are on their way. Espio and Tails should be here soon, they just had to get ready."<p>

Sonic asked, "How long will it take Silver to get here? I mean...he is traveling backwards in time for this."

Knuckles shrugged, "However long it takes. He'll get here when he gets here. I'm gonna head on in. See you in a little bit." He walked into the restaurant, heading to the room that had been reserved for the rehearsal dinner.

Sonic sighed, "Yeah, Shadow has his own schedule too." He hoped that the ebony hedgehog would arrive soon. Waiting and being patient had never been one of his strengths. He wanted things here and now.

A few moments later, Shadow jumped off a light post, having been standing there and listening to them talk the entire time. He was wearing a brown jacket with fur on the collar, but zipped up, green shorts, and his normal footwear. He told Sonic, "Don't be so panicked. I've been here the whole time, and don't worry about Silver. He'll get here. Congratulations, by the way. I just hope you're ready for this." This occasion only served to remind the darker colored hedgehog just how alone he was in the world. But, since Amy was alone too, just maybe...

Sonic smiled, "I am. I've been ready." He gave Shadow a reassuring pat on the shoulder, then told him, "Go on in. I'll be there in a little bit." He then noticed Espio jump down from one of the trees growing beside the door and smirked, "Heh, hey Espio." The chameleon was wearing a red and gold sleeveless collared top with a gold zipper down the middle, tan pants, and blue shoes.

Espio told him, "Hello, Sonic. Congratulations is all I can really think of to say at the moment, so I'll see you inside." He was always of few words, but at least he cared. He went inside.

The only person left of Sonic's groomsmen who hadn't shown up now was Silver. Sending him the invite hadn't been easy, but they had managed to get it to him and the young telekinetic hedgehog had agreed to take part quite willingly. Now if he would only get here...

Sonic sighed, "Come on, Silver. You may be from the future, but we don't have all the time in the world."

A golden vortex opened near the entrance and Silver leapt out, wearing a green blazer, black dress slacks and tan shoes. He said, "Hey Sonic, sorry I'm late. I got a bit distracted on the way over. I'm here now though."

Sonic smiled and shook his head, "It's fine. I'm just glad you got our invite and managed to make it. Are you going to stay in this time for the wedding?"

Silver nodded, "Yeah, but after that, I have to get back. There's a lot going on in the future right now."

Sonic responded, "Oh, okay. Well that's fine. Blaze and I will be on our honeymoon anyway, so it works out great!" He patted Silver on the back and the two of them headed inside, talking animatedly about anything and everything.

Silver, knowing of the future, asked Sonic directly, "So...have you and Blaze, umm...?"

Sonic blushed, "Not that it's any of your business, but yeah. Why?"

Silver responded, "Just wanted to know."

Sonic sighed, "No, you know something we don't. What's up?"

Silver answered, "I'm from the future, Sonic. There are going to be things that I know that I can't share with you. Spoilers and all that. I hope you understand."

Sonic smiled and told him, "I understand. It just kinda sucks you can't tell us anything about the future. Never mind though." He chuckled slightly, in a great mood because of the impending wedding. Once the two of them reached the room that had been reserved for this special occasion, Silver took a seat next to Espio and Sonic sat next to Blaze, who sat at the head of the table. She had on a blue off-the-shoulders dress, red gloves, and gray heels. She smiled and kissed Sonic on the cheek, "I'm glad everyone's here. But...do you have a speech ready? I heard that the groom is supposed to give a speech at the rehearsal dinner."

Sonic nodded, "I've got it. It's not really that long of a speech, but it will get across the sincerity of the love I feel for you, and just how ready we are to be married." He smiled and kissed her on the cheek, quietly telling her not to worry about a thing.

Silver said, "Hey Sonic, are you going to give your speech so we can eat? I'm sorry to be such a pain, but traveling back to your time from the future tends to give me a bit of an appetite."

Sonic smirked and nodded, "Okay, Silver, you don't need to be in such a hurry." He rose to his feet and told everyone, "Thank you all for coming. You don't know how much this means to us, to see basically our whole family here." He glanced at Marine, who was watching him with curious eyes. He then looked over to Rogue, who was bouncing young Kotton on her knee. "I won't say a lot, because of what Silver asked, but I will tell you this. Blaze and I have been in love since we first met. Personally, I've just not been sure how to express it. But, we are ready to take this next huge step and seal, if not strengthen more, our love for each other by taking vows and marrying. I know some of you had a probem with this..." He glanced over to Amy briefly, who blushed and hid her face, "but I'm glad that most of you have been so supportive and accepting of it. It's a refreshing thing to have those you care about most behind you in your decisions. It's a worrying thing too that Eggman hasn't attacked us...but Blaze and I vowed to each other before we came that if something did happen with that creep and one of us happened to get killed or captured, that we would try not to get out of hand and keep going. He's been an obstacle to us long enough. With all that said, let's eat." He sat back down and placed an arm around Blaze, sighing.

Blaze kissed him on the cheek, "That was a good speech, Sonic. You're right. It wasn't very long, but it got the point across." She smiled and sighed, in a blissful state of mind because of the impending wedding.

Knuckles stood up and said, "I only have a few things to say before we start. Good luck, Sonic and Blaze. I look forward to tomorrow. It's an honor to be your best man, and may the winds of fortune always be at your back. Stick with each other and you'll never be alone." He then sat down next to Rouge and picked up Kolin, who had started to cry. He spoke softly to the child and held him close, whispering in his ear. The young child needed to calm down.

With that, the food began to get passed around and everyone ate. After they were all finished, the party dispersed and went back to do their own things.

Blaze and Sonic went back to their house. When they got home, Sonic smiled and told her, "I guess I should hold up my end of the bargain since you did yours, eh?"

Blaze giggled and nodded, "That would be nice, yeah."

Sonic laughed and picked her up, then began to kiss her to get moving with it. He let out a small moan as Blaze licked his bottom lip. Although her tongue was a little rough, almost like sandpaper, he still opened his mouth and let her in. After they broke the kiss to breathe, he backed Blaze into a wall of their home, kissing and sucking on her neck, leaving a small hickey on the side of her neck.

Blaze moaned and pulled him closer, turned on by his ministrations. She said, "Don't leave me hanging, Sonic. Let's get it on."

Sonic needed no further encouragement and picked Blaze up, carrying her to the bedroom. He lay her down on the bed and began to finger her, eliciting a gasp and soft moan from the lavender feline. After hearing her moans and feeling her wetness, the blue hedgehog couldn't hold back anymore and removed his fingers. He positioned his hardened manhood at her dripping wet vagina and thrust hard into Blaze.

Blaze moaned and wrapped her legs around the blue hedgehog's waist, pulling him in deeper to touch her most intimate parts. She gasped as she felt Sonic thrust harder and faster in time with the bucking of her hips. It took them a moment, but once they got a rhythm going, they both were quite enjoying the experience.

Blaze began to feel orgasm approaching and muttered, "Sonic, I'm about to..."

Sonic responded, "I'm getting close, but not quite there."

Blaze gasped and then let out a really loud moan as Sonic thrust really hard and yelled, "SONIIIIIC!" Even though she had orgasmed, she could tell Sonic wasn't quite there, so she ground against him lightly to try and help it along. Eventually, the blue hedgehog did cum and he screamed her name, his semen pouring into Blaze's vagina at the speed of sound. He yawned and lazily put an arm around his feline bride-to-be, really worn out. He told her, "You were perfect, Blaze."

Blaze smiled, "Thanks, Sonic. You weren't so bad yourself." She kissed him on the lips and cuddled up against his left side. She then fell asleep, feeling really tired out from everything that had happened that night.

The next morning, the couple woke up early so that they could prepare for their wedding. However, as Blaze prepared to go get her hair done, she felt a little nauseous and groaned, putting a hand on her stomach.

Sonic, concerned that it could be a delayed reaction from her exposure to the fake Emeralds, asked her, "You okay, Blaze? You don't look so good."

Blaze answered, "I'm fine, baby. Probably just a little nauseous from the wonderful evening we had. It's going to be all right." She grinned and kissed him on the cheek to reassure him. This was going to be the perfect wedding...even if it meant she had to carry a barf bag everywhere.

Sonic sighed and nodded, "Okay. Well, I guess I'll see you later."

Blaze giggled and responded, "Right, later. Bye, sweetie." She walked over to him and gave him a quick parting peck on the lips, then left the house.

She got to Rouge's house about an hour later, around 10:00 AM. The wedding was at 12:00, so they had an hour and a half to get her all dolled up and looking her brightest and most beautiful before heading to the chapel.

Amy said, "Blaze, thank you for letting me take part in this, and Cream, and everyone else. I don't think Sonic would think it was really happening if they hadn't been here."

Blaze smiled and nodded, "You're welcome, Amy. You have Sonic to thank for you being in it though." She sat down on a chair and told Rouge, "Okay, do what you think would look best."

Rouge responded, "Okay, hun, but you're gonna need to sit still." She began to work on putting Blaze's hair into curls. While the girl's hair was still in the curlers, she put make-up on the girl and nodded, smiling, "You look gorgeous, Blaze. Sonic's a lucky hedgehog."

Blaze giggled, blushing a light shade of red, "Th-thanks...anyway, is my hair done yet?"

Rouge told her, "Oh, probably. Let me check." She took out one of the curlers and the feline's hair kept the curl that the curler had put in it, so all the curlers could come out and the curl would stay. She smiled, "Looks wonderful, Blaze. Hmm...maybe do a tiara-style hairdo." She took two pieces of Blaze's hair and pulled them together into a ponytail holder, making a sort of a curliqued circlet around the back of the pyrokinetic cat's head. She smiled, "Perfect." She brushed the remainder of the hair that was still down and handed a mirror to Blaze, "What do you think?"

Blaze gasped and smiled, nodding, "I like it a lot, Rouge. Thanks. Could...one of you help me get into my dress?"

Amy told her, "Let me." She unzipped the back of the dress and helped Blaze. After the feline was ready, she heard the chords for the Bridal march and sighed, "Rouge, that's our cue. Let's get going. You okay on your own now, Blaze?"

Blaze nodded, "Yeah, I've got it. Thank you."

Rouge asked, "What about the veil? You helped me with mine. The least I could do is return the favor."

Blaze responded, "Fair point. Okay, help me get my veil on."

The veil was put on Blaze, then Rouge walked out to join Amy.

Blaze looked long and hard at the mirror before heading out at the chords beginning the song 'Here Comes the Bride'. When she reached Sonic at the altar, she smiled at him, then turned to face the priest.

After they said their vows, and what seemed like an eternity for Sonic, the priest said, "You may kiss the bride."

Sonic gave Blaze a deep kiss, and she kissed back. Applause rang through the building, a din that was almost impossible to hear through. However, the priest announced the reception and dismissed everyone, things going as normal so far. Although, how long things would stay that way had yet to be seen.

At the reception, Knuckles gave a moving speech, and as he was about to congratulate the couple, a laser shot him in the back of his shoulder, resulting in him falling facefirst into his plate of food. He cursed, wiped his face with the back of his glove carefully, and turned around, "Who the hell did that?"

A moment later, Metal Sonic emerged from behind Blaze, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her away from Sonic. He said, his robotic tone getting across his sheer lack of caring at what was happening, "I did it, Knuckles the Echidna."

Sonic glared at Metal and said, "Let her go!" He charged at the robot and bounded off him with a Homing Attack, knocking Blaze out of his arms. He picked her up and jumped back, setting her on the ground. He asked, "You okay, Blaze?"

Blaze was in tears, but nodded and responded, "I'm fine. Oh Sonic, I can't believe it...our reception! Everything...everything is ruined!"

Sonic sighed and hugged her, telling her softly, "Not everything, Blaze. Yeah, the reception hall's a little messy now...but we still have each other and that's all that matters." He kissed her on the cheek and stroked her jaw softly with his gloved hand, trying to calm her down. He then turned to Knuckles, Shadow, Tails, Espio and everyone else. They had begun to fight Metal. He told her, "Hey, Blaze...I hate to leave everyone to fight my metal clone on their own. Will you help me fight him? Your power over fire would be helpful."

Blaze sighed and nodded, "Okay, Sonic. Let's just be careful fighting. I don't...I don't wanna risk losing you." She hugged him tight and kissed him on the lips before the two of them headed into the fray.

During the fight, Sonic got hit hard and slammed into the back wall of the reception hall headfirst. That knocked the blue hedgehog out, and Blaze glared, the flames on her hands roaring high because of her anger at seeing her new husband harmed by the blue robot. She charged at him, yelling, "You'll pay for that!" She then touched his arm, the robotic hedgehog's arm melting because of the extreme heat.

Metal tried to pull his arm away, able to tell that he wouldn't survive the heat the cat was generating. However, it didn't work and he began to melt into a pile of blue and silver goo. His last words were, "I couldn't stop you...but Dr. Eggman will...always be..." he melted away before he could finish what he was saying.

Tails sighed, "Well that's over. Is everyone okay?"

Sonic came to at that moment and responded, "I'm fine, just a really bad headache." He noticed Blaze falling to the ground in a heap next to Metal and frowned out of concern, running to catch her. He asked, "Blaze, what's the matter? Why are you so weak all of the sudden?"

Blaze shrugged, "I dunno. Maybe...maybe I just overdid it again, but I'm really exhausted."

Knuckles suggested as he walked up to the couple, "You're probably just tired from the fight. That one took a lot out of all of us."

Blaze responded, "True. Well, at least I know I'll sleep tonight." She looked to Sonic and told him, "And nothing _but _sleep. You understand me?"

Sonic blushed, but then nodded, "I understand. Hands off for now." He kissed her on the cheek, showing her that he was willing to keep his hands to himself for the time being. He picked up the exhausted and weak feline and carried her to their new house, to keep up the tradition of carrying the bride across the threshold. They had a new home as well, on a quiet part of Angel Island that Knuckles had built for them and given to them as a wedding gift. He had said that he knew Sonic and Blaze would want sometimes want privacy so this would be his gift to them.

The couple wasn't going to spend long in it for now, just tonight...but they would spend more time in it after their honeymoon and in the years to come. Blaze could see having children in this house one day, as the land that it was built on was cleared enough so that if expansions were needed, they could be added in without too much trouble. She sighed and yawned, "Well, Sonic...I don't know about you, but I'm ready to give that new bed a try."

Sonic nodded, "I think I'll hit the hay too. That fight took more out of me than I thought." He yawned and put his arm around Blaze and the young couple walked to the bedroom casually, shooting the breeze until they got there. He lay down in the bed and patted the spot next to him, "Come on, Blaze. Let's get some sleep. I'd say we'll both need it for the next couple days, hmm?" He winked suggestively.

Blaze sighed and rolled her eyes, but nodded, "Yeah, probably." She kissed Sonic on the lips once more before falling asleep on his chest, the sound of his heartbeat once again her music. She just loved life in general more now because of him. Soon, only her and Sonic's quiet breathing could be made out inside the new home.

The next morning, for once, Blaze was the first one awake. She awoke feeling sick to her stomach, almost as if she could vomit. She ran to the bathroom as fast as she could, just in case it did happen. Sonic was stirred awake by her sudden motion and knocked on the bathroom door. Thankfully, the bathroom was directly adjacent to the bathroom. He asked, "Blaze, is everything okay? Are you all right?"

Blaze asked, "I'm not sure. I woke up feeling sick..." After about an hour or two, the sick feeling went away and she came out of the bathroom, noticing him standing there, looking really worried and a little uncomfortable himself. "But I'm okay now. A little weird..."

Sonic said with a shrug, "Maybe it was a bad reaction to something you ate at the reception." He then added, "But you're okay now, right? That is weird. Hmm...ah well, let's head out to go on our honeymoon. You remember where we're going, right?"  
>Blaze rolled her eyes and responded, "Well, of course. We're going to the Emerald Coast. This should be a fun vacation." She grinned and kissed him on the cheek.<p>

Within an hour or two, Sonic and Blaze had all their things packed and ready to leave for the honeymoon. Sonic had a duffle bag on his shoulder and tan sandals on his feet. He looked to Blaze, who was wearing a maroon tank top and black shorts. He asked, "You ready to go, Blaze?"

Blaze smiled and nodded, picking up her large bag, "As ready as I'll ever be." She walked over to Sonic and put her arms around him, giving him a big hug and then kissing him on the cheek.

Sonic nodded and asked, "Do you wanna take a train or would you rather run all the way out there?"  
>Blaze began to feel a bit nauseous and groaned, "Not feeling so good...you can run if you don't mind carrying me."<p>

Sonic noticed her getting sick again and frowned, "If you're not feeling good, maybe we should wait to leave."

Blaze shook her head, "I'm still strong enough to go, just a bit nauseous. It's fine." She kissed him on the lips to let him know it was all right.

Sonic sighed and nodded, picking her up and telling her, "You may wanna hide your face if you're not feeling well. I'm not called the Fastest Thing Alive for nothing, and going so fast might not be easy on your stomach."

Blaze nodded and buried her face in Sonic's shoulder, the feeling of his soft blue fur on her cheeks making her feel a bit drowsy. She purred, blinked a few times, and then fell asleep.

Sonic noticed that she had fallen asleep, but kept running. 'Guess that fight took more out of her than I thought.' He thought to himself. They reached the Emerald Coast an hour later, due to Sonic's super speed. He went into the resort and got them a room in one of the small hotels there. He then carried Blaze into the room and lay her down on the bed, surprised she hadn't awakened yet. He sat by the bed for a little bit, but then got bored so he went to go get lunch for him and Blaze, whenever she woke up.

A few moments later, Blaze stirred and yawned, opening her eyes. She noticed Sonic run in and smiled at him, "Hi."

Sonic set their food bags down on the bedside table and smiled back, "Hi, Blaze. Are you feeling better?"

Blaze nodded, "Yeah, feeling a bit better. Still kinda tired and weak, but otherwise good." She yawned a bit, then leaned over and kissed her speedy blue husband. She noticed that their surroundings had changed and asked, "Are we at the Emerald Coast?"

Sonic answered, "Yeah, we got here to the resort while you were still asleep. I hope you don't mind, but I went to get us a special lunch while you were still asleep." He glanced at the food on the bedside table, and opened up the bags.

Smelling the food, Blaze's eyes lit up and she licked her lips. She asked, "What did you get?"

Sonic told her, "Well, a little bit of everything. I wasn't sure what you would eat so..."

Blaze smiled and told him, "You know I'll eat anything, as long as I get to spend time with you." She then added, "Just serve me out a little bit of everything."

Sonic smiled and nodded, "All right." He got plastic bowls and plasticware out, which had been compliments of the resort, and served Blaze a little bit of everything. He smiled at her and said, "I hope you like it all."  
>Blaze answered, "I'm sure it's all wonderful. The resort probably has their own private chef that cooks this, yeah?" She began to gobble down the food, eating it a lot faster and in larger quantities than normal. Once she was finished, she burped and said, "Oh, that was good. Thank you for lunch."<p>

Sonic responded, after finishing his last bite of chili dog, "You're welcome. So, what do you want to do now?"

Blaze told the blue hedgehog, "Hmm...how about we walk along the shoreline for a few hours, then come in and watch a movie, then dinner and curl up for the night? That's kinda boring, but oh well. I don't really feel up to doing a whole lot more...today." She yawned after finishing her sentence. She had just had a nap, and again she was already tired? That was kind of strange. Oh well, it was probably just because of all that had been going on lately. The tiredness would go away.

After they walked in the sand for a few hours, Sonic and Blaze returned to their room at the resort, ready for dinner and movie time. They got dinner to go from one of the restaurants on site, then took it back to their room. While they were eating, they put on their first movie of the night.

After Blaze finished her food, she put her plate down on the bedside table and curled up against Sonic, purring. She was feeling a strong urge just to be close to him. As the movie went on, she began to get more tired and fell asleep against her speedy blue husband.

Sonic smiled and put his arm around her, whispering into her ear, "Good night, Blaze." He finished watching the last bit of the movie, then turned off the DVD player, the TV, and the light. He then got back in bed with Blaze and fell asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

From Friends to Parents

As Sonic and Blaze made their way home, the blue blur carrying the lavender feline with a grin on his face, Blaze began to feel really tired and a little nauseous. She buried her face in her speedy blue husband's chest and asked him, "How far away are we?"

Sonic had noticed her bury her face and replied, "Not too far now. Why, is something wrong?" He was worried, regarding his wife with the most concerned look anyone had ever seen out of him. What had happened? Why did she suddenly feel so sick?  
>Blaze responded, "Nothing's really wrong, I'm just really tired and feeling a little sick all of the sudden. I'm sure it's nothing, though." She continued to nuzzle her head into his chest, getting comfortable. She whimpered quietly, very uncomfortable at the speed he was going. "Could you…maybe slow up a little though?"<p>

Sonic nodded, "Sure." He slowed down a bit, now getting really worried about Blaze. Normally, being carried by him while he was at top speed and/or moving very fast did not bother her. He asked, "Why don't we make another trip to the clinic? Maybe the doctors there could tell what's wrong with you."

Blaze sighed, but nodded her head, "Okay, Sonic. We can do that. I'm sorry to be such an inconvenience to you."

Sonic shook his head, "Don't apologize, Blaze. It's not your fault." He kissed her on the lips to show his sincerity, as he kept running. Once they reached the doctor's office, he took Blaze over to a couch to lie down. Maybe a little rest would help her a lot.

As they waited to be seen by the doctor, he sat on the floor in front of the couch and held Blaze's hand. She still seemed rather uncomfortable and he wanted to be as much of a comfort to her as he could.

A nurse came out of the back of the clinic after a while and said, "Sonic the Hedgehog and Blaze the Cat?"

The couple looked at the nurse curiously, and she answered, "The doctor will see you now."

They nodded and headed back to the examination room. After about five minutes of waiting, the doctor came into the room and asked, "What can I help you all with today?"

Blaze felt a sudden movement inside her stomach and placed a hand over it. 'That's not normal….could I be….pregnant?' She then looked directly at the doctor and asked, "Yes, could I have a blood pregnancy test done here? I've been feeling really weird. I'm tired and nauseous a lot, and ever since Sonic and I were finishing up our honeymoon, I've had quite a bit of an appetite."

The doctor nodded, "Sure. I won't need a lot of blood to check for that. Is there anything else you need done today?"

Blaze responded, "No, I don't. Um…what's a good place to get prenatal vitamins though, if I am?"

The doctor answered her question, then took out a needle and took a miniscule amount of blood from the feline's arm. He told her, "This will take about an hour. Do you mind sticking around for that long, or do you have somewhere you need to be?"

Sonic answered, "We'll wait around. I wanna see if this is why Blaze has been so out of sync lately." He placed an arm around his possibly pregnant wife and sat down next to her on the examination bed. Hopefully, she was just pregnant and there was nothing else wrong with her.

After about an hour, the doctor came back smiling and answered, "Congratulations, you two. You're pregnant."

Blaze gasped and a big grin lit up her face. She hugged Sonic, as happy tears flooded her eyes. She then responded, "Thank you, so much, doctor! When can we find out the baby's gender?"

The doctor told her, still examining the blood test results, "I would go to an OB/GYN and have them check. You should be able to tell in about 2 weeks. Based on what I read here about the LH levels, you're about 3 weeks along."

Sonic responded, "That fits. It's been about that long since we last...you know."

The doctor nodded, "I know what you mean. Is that all you needed today?"

Blaze answered, "Yes, thank you, doctor." She was still all smiles as she and Sonic went outside. She told him, almost jumping for joy, "I can't believe this, Sonic! We're going to be parents!" She was obviously excited about having a child of her own.

Sonic chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, its great news, Blaze! We should tell all our friends. I'm sure Knux and Rouge would be happy for us."

Blaze answered, "I'm sure they would to. Why don't we go and tell them in person?"

Sonic told her, smiling back, "Okay, but only for you, Blaze." He kissed her on the lips and then picked her up and went about half of his normal running speed, just to keep Blaze from getting sick again. The couple arrived at the house that Knuckles had built behind Mystic Ruins about 10 minutes later.

Sonic then set his pregnant wife down and knocked on the front door, ignoring the sounds of bawling infants. He would need to get used to that sound. A moment later, Knuckles came out, carrying his six-month-old daughter, Kotton. He told Sonic, "Oh, hi, Sonic, Blaze. Long time no see. What's up?"

Blaze beat Sonic to telling Knuckles and said, "We're having a baby, Knuckles!"

Knuckles smiled and nodded, letting out a slight chuckle at the enthusiasm the lavender feline had displayed, "Well, congratulations. Do you know if it's a boy or girl yet?"

Sonic answered him, "We won't know for another two weeks. Is Rouge around?"

Rouge answered from the living room, sitting just out of sight and holding Kotton's fraternal brother, Kolin, on her lap and feeding him fruit juice out of a bottle, "I'm right here, I heard. So, have you two thought about names?"

Blaze gasped, "Oh my gosh…no we haven't! Thank you for the reminder, Rouge." She looked to Sonic and said, "That's what we should do when we get home. Come up with a couple of names."

Sonic nodded, "Sounds perfect to me, Blaze." He grinned and kissed her on the lips.

Rouge told Blaze, "You know, you should have a baby shower. You'll get a lot of things for the baby that way."

Blaze asked, "Did you have one?"

Rouge replied, "Yeah, I had one, but it was while you and Sonic were out on one of your dates. You all have some bad timing sometimes."

Sonic shrugged, "Sorry. If we had known you were going to have one, we would've come."

Rouge shook her head, "I wasn't talking about you, dear. It's a girl thing."

Knuckles and Sonic both blushed and said, "Oh" at the same time.

Rouge and Blaze both giggled.  
>Blaze then said, "Well, we won't keep you two. You have your own kids to care for, so we'll just head home now. It was nice to talk to you again."<p>

Knuckles nodded, "You too, Blaze. Oh, and if you're ever in need of a babysitter…"

Rouge replied, "No, Knux! We've got our hands full with the twins as it is. We don't need to add another to the bunch. At least, we are not being babysitters for the moment. We want to get these two out of diapers before we look after someone else's or try again."

Knuckles answered, "Okay, just thought I'd offer. Sorry…"

Sonic answered, "Its okay, Knux, don't worry about it." He grinned and told the couple, "See you later!" He took Blaze's hand and the two ran back home to discuss names for the unexpected new arrival.

After a bit of discussion, although it was closer to an argument, they settled on the names Lance for a boy and Lisa for a girl. Lance had been Blaze's suggestion, as the name bore somewhat of a noble air. Sonic hadn't liked it at first, but Blaze had persuaded him with a pouty look, kisses and seductive blinking. He had suggested Lisa for a girl, as the name was quite pretty. Blaze had taken some convincing, but he had managed to. After the long discussion, the couple fell asleep on the couch in each other's arms, looking forward to the birth of their son or daughter.


	12. Chapter 12

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 12

A few weeks later, Blaze was lying on the couch with Sonic beside her and watching TV, when she looked at him, "Are you ready for this next appoinment? This is when we find out if the baby's a boy or a girl. Which one do you think you would prefer more?"

Sonic smiled and shrugged, "I'd be happy either way, Blaze. You remember how ecstatic I was when we first found out you were pregnant, don't you?" He had his arm around her and was holding her close, elated to soon be a father and relaxing in Blaze's warm body heat. For some reason, her body temperature was a little higher than normal now, but the blue hedgehog suspected that it had something to do with the little one growing inside her more than Blaze herself.

Blaze smirked and rolled her eyes, answering, "Come on, Sonic, everyone who's going to be a dad has a preference of gender. Even the ones that _say _they'd be happier either way. Boy or girl?"

Sonic sighed out of annoyance, then replied, "Okay, you got me. I want a little boy more, but like I said, I'd be happy with either one." He glanced at the clock briefly, which read 11:23 AM. Blaze's appoinment was at 12:00 noon. He told Blaze quietly and reluctantly, noticing that she was falling asleep, "Blaze, I hate to be obnoxious, but we have to go now. The appointment's in about 30 minutes."

Blaze groaned and leaned back against Sonic, not wanting to leave yet. She said, "Do you have to /run/ me there? Why can't we just take a car like normal people?"

Sonic chuckled and said, "Because we're far from normal, that's for sure. Now hang on, I'm gonna leave now. Since I have to run a little slower because you're pregnant, it's going to take a bit longer. That's why we're leaving now." He picked up Blaze carefully, so as not to aggravate her still-sick stomach. This first trimester was being no cakewalk for either of them. Blaze had morning sickness a lot, odd cravings, fatigue, nausea, and had to urinate a lot more often than she usually did. Sonic had it rough too because a lot of the cravings had turned out to be things they didn't have in the house. One time, it had been for apple sauce mixed with hot sauce on top of rice, chocolate syrup and pickles. Yeah, this child was going to be...an interesting addition to their home.

Once they got to the doctor's office, Blaze went to the secretary and said, "Hi, I'm Blaze the Cat, I'm here for my ultrasound with Dr. Dera." (A/n: This is a name I thought up on the spot. Any resemblance to an actual person is purely coincidental.) The secretary pulled up the record and nodded, "Yes, I see you here. Sign in with the clipboard and we'll have a nurse come right out and get you when the doctor's ready for you."

Blaze nodded, grabbed a clipboard, and signed in. She then got up and placed the signed clipboard on the secretary's desk. She went and sat down next to Sonic, who was sitting in a chair near the window and fidgeting. She asked quietly, "Sonic, why are you so antsy?"

Sonic replied, "I just want them to hurry up and get this finished. What's that doctor got to take care of that's more important than you, Blaze?" He asked, smiling and kissing her on the lips.

Blaze blushed and told him, "I'm sure I'm not the only client he has. Now relax. We'll find out soon enough."

A moment later, a female anthropomorphic Siamese cat walked out and said, "Blaze the Cat?"

Blaze stood and nodded, "That's me, ma'am."

The Siamese nurse answered, "Come with me. The doctor is ready to give you your ultrasound."

Blaze asked, "Is it okay for my husband to come with? He really wants to find out what gender the baby is with me."

The Siamese told her, "That's perfectly all right, sweetie. We're used to new fathers being like that." She smiled at Sonic, then walked the couple back to the room where they would have the ultrasound. She prepared Blaze by putting a gel on her baby bump, then said, "The technician will be here in a moment."

Sonic nodded and replied, "Okay, but hurry it up."

The Siamese nodded and left the room.

A moment later, an orange and black male Calico came in and told them, "Hello, my name is Lionel. I'll be giving you your ultrasound. This should be quick and painless. Just lay still and you should be all right, Blaze."

Blaze nodded and remained still as the technician turned the machine on.

Lionel ran the scanner part of the ultrasound machine over the baby bump on Blaze's stomach and nodded, "Baby looks good. Let's see what we've got here. You're finding out the sex, right?"

Sonic answered, "Yes, we wanna see!"

Lionel chuckled and nodded, "Okay, chill out, Sonic. Not everything runs at the speed of sound like you do." He moved the scanner so that it was at the spot where the genitals would be, which was a little higher up and told them, "Looks like a healthy little boy to me. You two see that?"

Blaze looked over at the projection screen and smiled, "Yeah, I see. Looks like you got what you wanted out of this, Sonic."

Sonic told her, "Yeah, that's awesome!" He grinned and hugged Blaze around the shoulders while the technician rubbed the gel off of Blaze's abdomen and belly. "Careful, she's got a precious burden in there, doc." He kissed her on the lips.

Blaze blushed and kissed him back. She then said, "Now that we know what the baby is, maybe we should tell the others. Rouge seemed interested in me getting a baby shower, whether or not they found out if it was a boy or girl before it happened."

Sonic thought a moment, then looked confused, "When were you planning on having that?"

Blaze answered, "Oh, we're having it in a few days, on Saturday. That's the only day that Rouge could get Knuckles to babysit the twins. He has a job at a low-budget gym and boxing ring that only gives him evenings and weekends off."

Sonic told her, "Wow, that sounds like a cool job. If she's leaving him with their kids, I should probably go help. Maybe even pick up a few pointers from Knux about child-rearing while I'm there." He kissed her on the lips as they walked out of the clinic and headed home.

Once there, the two of them ate a light late lunch and then lay down on the couch to watch a movie. Blaze was really feeling the effects of her pregnancy and wanted a break from things. She fell asleep when the movie was about half-over and Sonic smiled at her in her sleep. He was so happy that they were having a child. Now the world would have living proof that their marriage would last. At least, he liked to think so.

Later on, Blaze woke up again, feeling a bit nauseous. She looked at Sonic and smiled at him, "Hello."

Sonic replied, "Hi. You nap okay?"

Blaze nodded, "Yeah, it was great. I'm kinda hungry now though."

Sonic answered, "All right. What are you hungry for?"

Blaze told him, "Hmm...maybe pancakes with bacon on top and chocolate chips in the middle?"

Sonic got an odd look on his face, but nodded, "Okay, I'll whip those up for you. Then I'll make some chili dogs for myself. You're not the only one that's hungry, babe." He leaned over and kissed her on the lips once more before heading into the kitchen.

After Blaze's pancakes were done, Sonic put them on a plate and got a container of syrup, just in case his pregnant wife wanted maple syrup mixed in with the odd combination of chocolate chips and bacon. He poured her some orange juice, then set both the cup and the plate on a tray. He then grabbed some plasticware from a drawer, and carried it in the living room, where Blaze was sitting and watching TV. He set the tray on the coffee table and said, "Here you go, beautiful. Bacon and chocolate chip pancakes, orange juice, and maple syrup to go on the pancakes just in case."

Blaze smiled and replied, "Thank you, Sonic." She ate the stack of 12 pancakes and drank up the orange juice while Sonic went to make his chili dogs.

Sonic soon came back into the room, carrying a plate with 5 or 6 chili dogs on it. He asked, "Did you eat those already, Blaze?"

Blaze answered him, "Yeah...that's not a bad thing, is it?"

Sonic shook his head, "No, it's not. I was just about to ask you if you needed anything else, but you started stuffing your face before I could even say anything."

Blaze blushed, a little embarrassed, "Oh, I'm sorry. No, I don't need anything else. You can go ahead and eat though. You spent all that time making my scrumptious pancakes. It would be cruel of me to deny you your favorite food." She smiled, then sat up a bit to kiss him.

Sonic replied, "Thanks, Blaze. Are you sure?"

Blaze nodded, "Yeah, I'm sure."

Sonic told her, "All right, but if you need anything else, let me know." He kissed her on the lips, then set his plate next to Blaze's. He sat down on the floor in front of the couch so she could lay down and began munching on his chili dogs. He then looked at her curiously, after chewing and swallowing one bite, "Are you sure the smell of the chili won't make you sick? I know your nose has gotten pretty sensitive lately."

Blaze answered, "Really, Sonic, it's fine. Go ahead and eat it." She was surprised that he had noticed something so small. Then again, he was really close to her compared to the others, so it wasn't surprising he had caught onto that. She quietly took the remote from where it sat in front of Sonic's fork and switched on the TV. After watching the news, she switched it off and asked Sonic, "I know this is gonna sound random, but can we go bowling?"

Sonic nodded, "...Sure, just make sure you use a lighter ball. I don't want you to hurt yourself or our baby." He stood up and kissed her on the lips once before picking the lavender feline up. He then ran them to the nearest bowling alley.

After playing a game or two, Blaze got tired of bowling and said, "Okay, I'm done. Can we go home now?"

Sonic answered, "Oh, sure, Blaze, we'll go back now. Was it fun?"

Blaze smiled, "Yeah, it was great. I'm glad we got to do this one more time as a couple before our baby."

Sonic nodded, "Me too. Bowling's a good family activity too, so...if you ever wanna come back here after we have a few little ones, let me know, okay?"

Blaze giggled and replied, "Okay, sure."

Sonic told her, "It just occurred to me. Will you be able to use your powers while you're pregnant?"

Blaze responded, "Probably. I've not noticed anything different."

Sonic told her, "Oh, okay. Well, let me know immediately if anything changes in that department too. I need to know if I need to protect you and the baby."

Blaze smiled and nodded, "Of course." She put her arms around him as they ran back to the house, extremely happy that they were having a little boy. When they got back, they ate dinner and sat down to another movie; this time though, Blaze insisted on having popcorn with caramel, cheese and cinnamon on it.

Sonic got it for her, then went back to watching the movie. After it was over, he fell asleep in her arms.

The next few days went as usual, nothing too exciting happening since Eggman seemed to be trying to lay low for the time being. On Friday, Blaze told Sonic, "Well, it's time for the baby shower, Sonic. Are you going to be okay on your own for a few hours?"  
>Sonic chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, Blaze, it's okay. Go, enjoy yourself. I'll just find something to do with the guys in the meantime." He smiled at her and kissed her on the cheek before she walked out the door, letting her know that though they'd be miles apart physically, they would remain in each other's hearts and minds.<p>

Blaze went to Rouge's place, as that was where they would have the party. Knuckles had agreed to take the little ones with him to work, as he had an evening shift and it would work out best if their little ones were out from underfoot. She smiled when she saw all the girls in the group waiting for her, "Hi everyone, sorry I'm late. I had to give Sonic goodbye kisses."

Rouge giggled and nodded, "It's perfectly all right, I understand. Well, somewhat..." She wasn't going to say anything, but...home life with Knuckles was starting to get a bit stale for her. Not that she didn't love him or the kids, but...life certainly didn't have the luster it used to. She smirked as she glanced at Shadow, who was basically being a guard for the whole thing, just in case Eggman tried anything. She was thinking 'Maybe a tiny affair would spice things up for me...and as long as I can keep Knuckles in the dark, everything should be okay.' ((A/N: Naughty naughty, Rouge. **waggles finger**)

After they ate a hearty meal of chicken noodle soup and subs, the girls began to give presents to Blaze. Amy was first, as she felt the closest to Blaze now. She held out a blue wrapped box and told her, "Congratulations, Blaze! Open it. I think you'll find it helpful!"

Blaze opened the box and inside was a cute onesie in the shape of a Chao. She giggled and told Amy, "Thank you, Amy. I'm sure I'll find some use in this." She turned to Vanilla, who had a pad of paper handy and was writing down what she got and from whom, "This is a Chao onesie from Amy." She then turned and faced the other girls, "Okay, next!"

Rouge told her, handing her a gold garment box, "Here, this is something from Knuckie and me. We thought it might spice up things with Sonic after the two of you have your kid."

Blaze looked confused, but nodded and opened the box. Inside was a thin silk, blue lingerie with leopard print designs on the bust and the bottoms. She blushed and replied, "Umm...thanks, Rouge. But after we have kids, I doubt Sonic and I will try to...umm, get it on that much. We'll be busy with Lance."

Rouge laughed, "Very true, but still. Make sure you make time for each other. Unfortunately, with twins, Knuckles and I don't do that much anymore as a couple and we wanted to convey to you how important it is to not let things go stale."

Blaze sighed, "Whatever, Rouge. I doubt things will get stale at all between Sonic and me. Anyway, Vanilla, from Rouge I got some lingerie. Next one, please." She didn't seem pleased at all that Rouge had bought her something like that.

After the gifts were all given out, Rouge responded, "Knuckles is gonna be home in about 45 minutes with the kids, so I'm gonna need you girls to clear out, but Shadow..."

Shadow looked at her, seeming bored out of his mind, "Yes?"

Rouge answered, smirking, "You can stick around if you want." She began to play with his chest fur, trying to get a reaction.

Shadow pushed her away, "Keep your hands off me, slut. I will not steal another man's wife. It wouldn't be right if we tried something, and you know it."

Blaze and the other girls left quickly, not wanting to see what was going to happen. They were afraid a fight would start between the two of them and they didn't want to be in the middle of it.

Rouge told him, "Maybe so, but you gotta admit, I'm tempting." She said seductively, winking her left eye at Shadow.

Shadow folded his arms across his chest, "You are, but you're Knuckles' wife, and frankly, he's someone I'd rather avoid getting on the bad side of. So if you're going to play games with Knuckles' heart, I want no part of it."

Rouge sighed, knowing that the only way she would get what she wanted was if she got him drunk or high off something. It wouldn't be easy since he was the Ultimate Lifeform and would probably burn through alcohol or drugs in no time flat...but she'd come up with something. She told him, "Can we at least talk? We were friends before I got married after all, and I've not had much time for friends lately, apart from the girls, of course."

Shadow rolled his eyes, "After what you've been trying to do all evening, what reason do I have to stick around? All you'll try to do is put a stain on my honor."

Rouge sighed, "Whatever, Shadow. I'm giving up, okay? Just stay here a minute. I need to go make a phone call." She walked away and went to call one of her 'connections' to the drug world. They would have to whip up a serious cocktail for Shadow, and who better than the ones she knew? She said, "Hey, it's Rouge. I'm horny and trying to seduce Shadow the Hedgehog, but he's no picnic. Was wondering if you guys could help me by providing me with enough stuff to knock him out."

The man on the other side of the line told her, "Sure, but you better have good money."

Rouge told him, "Oh don't worry, I do. My husband is a Guardian of the Master Emerald. He's also the last of his kind, but his family left him with a substantial fortune. He also works so we have great money. Just make up your strongest cocktail and meet me in an about an hour. I should have him pretty horny by then. I have ways of seduction that I haven't even tried yet."

The man smirked, "All right then girly, see you in an hour." He hung up the phone.

Rouge went back to Shadow and told him, rubbing behind his ears, "Now, where were we exactly?"

Shadow had to resist the urge to purr at Rouge's ministrations and responded, "We were nowhere. You won't seduce me no matter what you try."

Rouge told him, "One way or another, you'll bend, Shadow the Hedgehog. Even if it takes me all night." She winked suggestively and began to massage his tense shoulders, trying everything she knew on him.

Shadow sighed contentedly as he was massaged. He inadverently leaned back and placed his head on Rouge's boobs. They made a surprisingly soft pillow. About two seconds later however, he realized what he was doing and moved his head, "Keep trying, Rouge. You won't suc...cee...d." She had her hand on his tail and was playing with it half-heartedly. He told her, standing up and pushing her back, "Keep your hands to yourself, I said!"

Rouge smirked, "Heh...your mind may not like me doing this, but your body says otherwise." She pointed out his half-hard dick, which had come out of its sheath and was standing at full erection.

Shadow blushed very slightly, a bit of pink making its way onto his muzzle, "It's wrong for you to look at _that _particular region of my anatomy, Rouge. You should only be looking at Knuckles.'"

Rouge shrugged, "Who gives a f***? I don't. Things with Knuckles got stale for a reason. He doesn't want sex anymore. I've asked for it for the past month, but he won't do it. Please? We can keep this a secret if you're worried."

Shadow crossed his arms, "And if you get pregnant? What are we supposed to do then? You can't exactly hide a pregnancy. And if I get you pregnant, an abortion will be out of the question. I don't believe an unborn kid should have to pay for their parents' mistakes or lack of judgment."

Rouge sighed, "You got me. I was only trying to seduce you out of pity. I know you haven't found anyone and thought a baby would give you someone to love. Please, Shadow...just this once."

Shadow was offended and told her, "You sicken me, Rouge. I didn't want to believe you would stoop that low, but you have. Just let me go if it's going to be that way. I refuse to be the father of a child from a one-night stand. I'm called the Ultimate Life-form for more than one reason, you know."

Rouge asked, "So...even just one time of sex with someone for you could...?"

Shadow blushed, but nodded, "Yes." ((XD Shadow is exceptionally fertile, in other words.))

Rouge told him, "Well that's okay. Let's just go for it anyway. If I do get pregnant, I'll come clean with Knuckles but tell him the whole thing was my idea."

Shadow crossed his arms, "He wouldn't believe you. He would think I had some unexpressed hatred toward him or Sonic and was taking it out on you, and you know it."

Rouge sighed, "I knew you wouldn't make it easy." She walked out of the room. It had been only 15 minutes, but she was gonna try something else. A different approach. She put on some rather sexy lingerie that she would only normally wear for Knuckles, thinking it might help move things along at her pace.

However, Shadow refused to even look at her when she came back in the room. He was making it impossible.

After about 45 minutes of trying to seduce Shadow, there was a knock on the door and Rouge went to answer it. It was the people from earlier. She said, "It's about time. What took you so long?"  
>The man responded, "Almost got caught by some cops. Never mind though, they didn't find any of the stuff. Now hand over the money, and it's yours."<p>

Rouge handed over some money and told them, "Pleasure doing business with ya, fellows." She winked at them, then closed the door and took the box of drugs into the house. She put the drugs in the bedroom, in the closet. She then went back to Shadow and told him, "Come check out the bedroom. It's absolutely breathtaking. Especially the bed."

Shadow rolled his eyes, but followed her anyways, knowing that she would relentlessly bug him if he didn't. He looked in the room once and then looked back at her, "Nice room. Can I go now?"

Rouge sighed, "You're such a spoilsport, Shadow. Luckily, I got some help." She grinned and went to the closet. She got some of the cocktail out of the box and mixed it into a punch, hoping that the smell of the alcohol in the spiked punch would outweigh the smell of the drugs.

Shadow took a drink, as he knew that his system would burn through alcohol in little to no time. He soon began to feel...really sick and collapsed to his knees, "What the _hell_ was in that?"

Rouge smirked, "You'll find out soon enough, Shadow dearest. In the meantime, let's just get more comfortable shall we?"  
>Shadow was really starting to feel the effects of the drugs and alcohol and said, smiling, "Yeah, let's." He let Rouge push him down on the bed and kiss him deeply. After a moment, he began bucking his hips under her, turned on because of their positions. He rolled them over, now on top of Rouge, still in a compromising position. He began to kiss her up and down her neck and finger her at the same time, eliciting a series of moans from the white-furred bat.<p>

Rouge told him, "Shadow...go ahead and get started. Stop teasing. We don't have time for that little game. Knuckles will be home soon, and you'll need to shower so you don't smell like sex."

Shadow smirked and nodded, "Right." He thrust hard into her vagina, moaning as he felt her folds tightening around him. He began thrusting in and out at a fast rhythm, which Rouge somehow managed to keep up with. They came at the same time, with Shadow still inside Rogue so that none of his seed would spill onto Knuckles' and Rouge's marriage bed. He pulled out after he came and said, "That was...great, Rouge. Thank you." He kissed her and walked out of the room, then passed out on the floor.

Rouge did a facepalm and took Shadow into the guest bathroom to clean him up, so that he wouldn't smell of sex. She then lay him on the couch in the living room. Hopefully Knuckles would learn nothing. When he got home, she gulped and went to shower in their bathroom. She then came out and said, "Hey, Knuckie! How was work?" She kissed him on the cheek.

Knuckles replied, "The usual. How was the baby shower for Blaze?"

Rouge answered, "Oh, it was great! She...didn't really like our gift though."

Knuckles told her, "I told you that lingerie was a bad idea, but did you listen to me? No, you insisted. Anyways..." He was walking into the room when he saw Shadow sleeping on the couch and smelling lightly of alcohol. He asked, "What the hell is Shadow doing here?"

Rouge explained, trying to further conceal the affair she had with him,"He got drunk and wanted to sleep it off here. You're okay with that aren't you?"

Knuckles rolled his eyes, "That idiot. Yeah, sure, it's fine. Just don't take advantage of him, Rouge."

Rouge got a shocked look on her face, "Who me? Why would I _ever_ do something like that when I've got the sexiest man on Mobius right in front of me?" She kissed him on the lips, hopefully helping keep the whole affair quiet.

Knuckles bought it and said, "Fair point. Okay, so...what now?"

Rouge told him, "How about I take you out to dinner? My treat."

Knuckles answered, "Sounds good to me."

The couple went out to dinner and came back home to a vomiting Shadow. Rouge helped him to the bathroom and to the toilet while Knuckles cleaned up the mess.

Shadow, not very happy with the whole situation and still feeling quite ill, told her, "What the hell happened, Rouge? Why do I feel sick?"

Rouge explained quietly that she had drugged him to have sex with him, so that Knuckles wouldn't hear, "I'm sorry, Shadow, but...Knuckles isn't providing what he's supposed to provide so I went to another source. I didn't know this would make you so sick. They didn't warn me."

Shadow, repulsed by the idea, turned his head and vomited into the toilet again. He told her, "So you basically took advantage of the whole situation. No wonder I feel so used and dirty." He got up, after he was done throwing up, and left the house, waving goodbye to Knuckles. He didn't want to complicate things by telling him what had happened.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Blaze were enjoying marital bliss, spending time just talking to each other and imagining what their baby boy would look like.

Sonic said, "I bet he'll be a mini-me, with some traits from you."

Blaze giggled and lightly patted her pregnant belly, "Yeah, or he could look a lot like both of us. We'll just have to see how he turns out." She sighed and lay back in the bed, not sure if she should tell Sonic what she had seen today.

Sonic could tell something was troubling his wife and took hold of her hand, "Blaze...what's wrong? Did something happen at the baby shower?"

Blaze responded, "Oh yeah, something happened all right. Rouge was trying to seduce Shadow."

Sonic blinked, "Hold the phone...Shadow? Why would she do that? She's perfectly happy with Knuckles...I thought."

Blaze answered, "She was talking about how things got stale with him during the shower. I don't doubt that they started a fight after we left though, cause Shadow didn't seem to want any part of it."

Sonic nodded, "Not surprising. I swear, I sometimes think he's asexual."

Blaze giggled, "That's not quite the term, Sonic. I don't know what the term is for someone who isn't interested, but it's not that."

Sonic yawned, "Well, it's been a long day then, for both of us. Why don't we settle in for the night?"

Blaze responded, "Sounds like a plan to me." She lay on her back, with Sonic curled up against her and an arm around her waist. She couldn't wait to have the baby now, so that she could find out what happened after she and the other girls left without everyone treating her like an invalid.


	13. Chapter 13

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 13

The next morning, Blaze was actually the first one awake for a change and looked at Sonic, who was actually sleeping late. It was a little strange, but it gave her an opportunity as well. She could find out what happened between Shadow and Rouge without worrying anyone. She gave Sonic a light peck on the cheek and slipped out of the room. Once she was out of the room, she ran out of the house and went to find Shadow. She saw him sitting under a street light and walked over. She said, "Hello, Shadow. Tell me, what happened between you and Rouge after the girls and I left?"

Shadow glared up at her, but in the corner of his left eye, a small tear was forming. He told her, "She tried to seduce me repeatedly, then got me drunked and drugged so she could have sex with me. THAT'S what happened, Blaze. Now, leave me alone."

Blaze gave a gasp and took a step back from shock. After a couple of minutes, she frowned and nodded, "Sure, but...talk to someone about this. You shouldn't try to deal with something this big on your own. Sonic and I will be here for you if you need us."

Shadow responded, "He doesn't even know. Neither of you could understand."

Blaze sighed, "I'm going to tell him so he can tell Knuckles. The echidna should know what happened. It's not fair to leave him in the dark."

Shadow seemed a tad nervous and walked a little closer, taking her hand, "There's no way I could convince you to keep quiet, would there be?"

Blaze withdrew her hand and shook her head, "No. Knuckles deserves to at least know what happened. I doubt he'll blame you for anything."

Shadow sighed and nodded, "Okay." He glanced at the ground, not sure of what else to say.

Blaze told him, "It's going to be all right, Shadow. What happened wasn't your fault."

Shadow slammed a fist against the concrete, creating a small dent, and told her, "It WAS! I should have been able to resist her! I should not have lost control..."

Blaze sighed and put a hand on his shoulder, "Knuckles won't blame you. If he knows you weren't yourself, he won't hold you responsible. That's just not how he is. I guess I'll see you later, Shadow. I should be getting back. Sonic's probably up and getting worried. Thank you."

Shadow looked confused, "What?"

Blaze clarified, "Oh, for telling me what really happened. You didn't have to go into detail, but you did." She waved to Shadow and took off running. When she was about halfway home, she almost ran smack into Sonic, but the blue blur stopped short. He asked, "Blaze, where were you? What's going on? You look...upset."

Blaze told her husband, "Rouge...raped Shadow. She drugged him and got him drunk to do it. I...wanted to tell you so you could tell Knuckles. You know as well as I do that he has a right to know as Rouge's husband."

Sonic gave a gasp of shock. He couldn't believe Rouge! Playing with Knuckles' heart and toying with his mind by making him marry her? That just wasn't right. After a couple of minutes, he sighed and nodded, "Yeah...you're probably right. But...how will we make him believe us? Rouge probably told him something or did something to pull the wool over his eyes." He sighed, "We should probably go over there and tell him regardless."

Blaze asked, "Even if he doesn't believe it?"

Sonic replied, "Yeah, because if he doesn't believe us, at least he will have been told. It would be better if we told him and he didn't believe us then to have him find out his own way and get mad at us later. You ready to go?" He asked, picking her up.

Blaze sighed and nodded, adjusting a bit as Sonic prepared to take off at full speed.

Once the couple reached Rouge's and Knuckles' home, Sonic set Blaze down and knocked on the door. Knuckles came to answer it. When he flung it open, he nodded to Blaze and Sonic, "Hey. How are you two? How's the baby doing, Blaze?"

Blaze answered, "He's doing fine; growing." She looked to Sonic and sighed, then looked back at him, "We have...something to tell you, Knuckles. Is Rouge home?"

Knuckles responded, "Actually, she's napping with the twins right now. Why?"

Sonic replied, "You'll want to sit down for this. It's pretty big news. It involves her...and Shadow."

Knuckles looked confused, "What do you mean? What about him?"

Sonic told him directly, "Rouge forced him to have sex with her. She drugged him and got him drunk. He wasn't exactly in control when it happened, so don't be mad at him." He sighed.

Knuckles punched a hole in one of the walls opposite the door, frustrated and quite angry. He goes to the twins' room and knocks quietly on the door, waiting for a response from Rouge. She answers the door with a yawn, "Yeah?"

Knuckles confronted her right then. The red echidna never was one to beat around the bush. He informed her, "Sonic tells me that you forced Shadow to have sex with you, using alcohol and drugs. Is this true?"

Rouge crossed her arms, glaring at the blue hedgehog standing behind him, "Of course not! Whoever gave you that idea?"

Sonic told the couple, "What's your problem, Rouge? Blaze got it straight from Shadow."

Knuckles glared, "...If Shadow says it, then it has to have happened. Shadow isn't one to lie. Sonic, Blaze, I need you two to go. I need to talk to Rouge alone, if you don't mind."

Sonic nodded, "Okay. See you later then, Knuckles." He picked up Blaze and the couple went back to their house, not wanting to be around when the resulting fight happened.

Knuckles backhanded Rouge, making a cut on her right cheek because of the points on his gloves, "What were you thinking, woman? We are _married_! I _was_ _happy _to have you by my side. Now, that I've heard this...not so much anymore." He began to walk out of the room, thoroughly angry at her. He punched out a wall, making a huge dent in it.

Rouge followed him, not quite done with the matter yet. She told him, grabbing his arm, "Hold up, Knuckles. Let me give you my side of the deal. After you and I had the twins, I felt like life was starting to get a little boring. I thought that an affair with Shadow would put some spice back in my life."

Knuckles told her, shaking her off, "Don't even _bother _trying to come up with excuses! I want a divorce, Rouge, and full custodial rights over Kotton and Kolin!" He turned to face her and glared, ready to argue if need be.

Rouge argued back, "It's not an excuse! It's the truth! I was horny and you weren't around so..."

Knuckles shouted back, "And you couldn't wait a little bit? You need to learn some patience Rouge. As a jewel thief, I would think you had a lot of it. Apparently not though! Apparenty everything has to be RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!" He punched her in the jaw.

Rouge fell back, then hissed and punched him in the chest, "It's been a whole MONTH that we've been without sex! I was getting desperate!"

After about an hour or two of this back and forth argument, young Kotton came crawling out of the room, wailing. She was quite hungry.

Knuckles sighed and glared daggers at Rouge before picking the girl up and carrying her over to the refrigerator to get a bottle, ignoring Rouge because he was so angry at her.

Rouge told him, "You're being a jerk, Knuckles. You won't even _speak _to me."

Knuckles responded, "Excuse me for trying to take care of my kids."

Rouge hissed and retorted, "They're my kids too!"

Knuckles told her, "Not anymore." After he finished feeding Kotton, the red echidna put her in her crib for the moment while he went to pack a duffle bag. He wasn't going to stay in a house that was no longer home. Home was where the heart was, and Rouge's heart was obviously not in this. After he had packed, Knuckles packed the twins a large diaper bag of clothes and diapers. After that, he picked up the bags, placed one on each shoulder, then went to get the twins. Not saying a word to Rouge after he had them held one on each arm and leaning against his torso, he left the house and went to stay in a hotel for a week, wanting to stay there until he could find a place of his own. He would raise the twins by himself. It would be hard, but he would manage...somehow. He called a divorce lawyer, knowing that it would be an ugly custody battle for the twins since Rouge had said they were her kids too, and he wasn't about to let the slut ruin their lives also. He ahired a private investigator to track Rouge's movements. That way, the judge would see what kind of life she led without him there.

A few days later, Sonic showed up at the hotel room, knocking on the door. He asked, "Hey, Knuckles, you got a minute?" He heard the twins bawling in the background, and said, "Uhh...is now a good time?"

Knuckles told him, "It's as good a time as any. What did you need?"

Sonic answered, "I heard that you and Rouge got a divorce. Does that mean...my marriage is going to end too? Will my marriage with Blaze last?" He was starting to doubt the strength of marriage, because he, as well as many others, had thought that Knuckles and Rouge were really in love.

Knuckles answered as best he could, "Yes, it will. You and Blaze have a stronger love than Rouge and I did. And...I don't think Rouge married me because she loved me, anymore. I think she married me so she could have a free license to have sex with me whenever she wanted to. I wouldn't put it past her after what she did to Shadow. Blaze isn't like Rouge. She loves you too much to try and sleep around. You should believe in her, and in the marriage. It's going to last you a lifetime, even if mine didn't."

Sonic smiled, in a better mood now that he had talked to his friend, "Uhh...yeah, sure, Knux. I still have a few things to think about, though. Thank you for listening and the advice." He walked away and went to his favorite spot in the park, to think for a little bit. He muttered to himself, "Am I really ready to be a dad? Is that next step really the best thing for my marriage with Blaze?"

After thinking for about 20 minutes, Sonic smiled and said, "Yeah, it is. I'm as ready as I'm ever gonna be. The only reason Knuckles and Rouge's marriage didn't last was because he loved her more than she loved him. It all makes sense now!" He started running home, elated and in a better state of mind than he had been when he left home, thanks to Knuckles, his advice and the short time alone he had.

However, on his way home, he ran into Shadow, who was obviously stil hurting a lot on the inside from what Rouge did to him. He was uncharacteristically crying, since he had considered Rouge a close friend and couldn't understand why she had pulled that. He shouted, with tears in his eyes, "That stupid slut! Where does she get off thinking she can take advantage of our friendship to make me her sex toy? She knows she was one of my few friends. It doesn't make sense..."

Sonic smirked and said, "Quite the opposite, Shadow. It makes perfect sense. She knew you didn't have many friends, so she took advantage of that to keep it quiet." He walked over, his expression changing to a frown. He then said, "I'm sorry for what happened to you, and I'm sure you're feeling angry, ashamed, and hurt because of what happened, but..."

Shadow growled, "But what?"

Sonic told him, "Sitting around here moping about it won't help you. You should confront Rouge with what you feel, let her know just how batty it was for her to take advantage of a friendship with you. Cause she really has no idea how valuable it is." He grinned and patted Shadow on the shoulder, wiping his tears from his eyes, "No tears. Just smile, pick yourself back up and keep going. You're the Ultimate Life-form after all. You can stand up to anyone." He then added, "And if that's not enough reason for you, think about Maria. Would she want you to get depressed because one of your friends was stupid enough to take advantage of you? I think not. I think she would want you to grin and bear it. Well, not literally of course, but I think you get what I mean. Anyway, I should be getting back to Blaze. Later, Shadow!"

Shadow smiled and nodded after Sonic, in a better mood now that he had talked to the blue hedgehog.

Meanwhile, Knuckles began searching the rental apartment classifieds, wanting to find a new place to live at as soon as possible. Staying in a hotel room for an indeterminate amount of time would not be acceptable, and the beds at the hotel were not exactly the most comfortable. He found quite a few and looked at them all. After a while, he narrowed it down to two and went again to look at both and hopefully reach a decision. It took him a few weeks, but he finally decided on which he wanted to live in.

Rouge began applying around for different places as an office assistant. Because of her experience at Club Rouge, and because she was good with money, she figured that it was the best job for her. After one of her long days of looking for a new job, she went home and began feeling a little sick. Thinking it was probably cause of the stress of the divorce and being low on money, she thought no more of it and went to bed early.

When she got up in the morning, she felt no different. In fact, she felt worse, sick to her stomach. What was going on? She went to see her doctor and he told her she was pregnant, 2 weeks along. She thanked the woman and left. Pregnant _and _two jobs? What a challenge her life was going to be! But, she felt like, if anyone was up to the challenge, it was her.

Time skip: about 2 weeks later...

Knuckles was moving into a perfect apartment for him and the twins. Although it was small, it had two bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, a small living room and dining room combo and an entertainment center. He was also still working at the gym, though now, he was full-time instead of part time and had taken the position of office assistant, as it would make it easier for him to have the twins with him on the job. He usually averaged between 40 and 52 hours a week, making a wage that was just enough to support him and the twins. The custody battle for Kotton and Kolin had indeed been a long, ugly and drawn-out affair, but he had managed to get full custody of them from Rouge. Although, she did have visitation rights...not that she would ever use them.

Speaking of Rouge, she was now working two jobs. She worked as part-time manager for Club Rouge, of course and had also landed herself a job as an office assistant at a small grocery store called Grocers City. At Club Rouge, she typically had 36 hours a week and at Grocers City, she usually averaged right at 40 hours. The two jobs were hard, but she was managing to get by. On her off days at both jobs, she would hire male prostitues and hold parties with her friends from work. She was also pregnant with Shadow's baby, but she hadn't told anyone yet. She wasn't very far along yet, only 4 weeks in, according to her doctor. She just didn't know how to break the news to Shadow after what she had done.

While we are on the subject of Shadow, he came to Rouge's new apartment above Club Rouge and knocked on her door. Not wanting to wait long, he knocked the door down by kicking it. He then noticed a male prostitute walking out of one of the bedrooms and nodded a short greeting, not in the mood to put up with any of this. He then waltzed right into Rouge's bedroom, not caring if she was naked or not. He then said, "Rouge, what is going on with you? Why are you acting this way?"

Rouge sighed and did her best to explain as she got her clothes back on, wanting to come clean about what was going on with her life, "I'm pregnant with your baby, okay?"

Shadow got a shocked look on his face, then asked her, "How long have you known?"

Rouge replied, "I found out two weeks ago, and my doctor told me I was two weeks along. It was when the divorce with Knuckles was finalized and he got the rights to our kids."

Shadow told her, "Talk about lousy timing."

Rouge nodded, "I agree."

Shadow asked, "So what are you going to do?"

Rouge told the black and red hedgehog, "I'm putting the kid into an orphanage of course! With everything I've got going on, I don't have time for a kid. Between the two jobs and parties, kids are not on my list of priorities." She finished getting dressed and turned to look at him.

Shadow glared and told her, "Then I will adopt the child. I won't have him or her grow up basically alone like I did." He leaned on the wall, his arms folded across his chest to show his disgust with her. He couldn't believe she hadn't told him sooner!

It was then that the doorbell rang. Hardly anyone used the doorbell, so Rouge was guessing that it was Blaze. She was right. She greeted Blaze, "Hi there, Blaze. What's going on?"

Blaze responded, "I just wanted to...offer some support." She gasped, feeling a sudden wetness in between her legs and running down her thighs, "Oh no...no, not now!"

Rouge noticed the puddle at Blaze's feet and told her, "You look like you're the one who needs support right now. Hang on, Blaze. We'll get you to the hospital."

Sonic came running up behind Blaze, having known that she was due to have Lance any day. He picked her up gently and ran as fast as his feet would carry him. He hoped that they would make it there before she was too far in, "Hang in there, Blaze! We'll make it to the hospital and everything will work out okay."

They got to the hospital in record time. After Blaze was taken to labor and delivery, Sonic fainted, having been holding in the urge to do so ever since her water had broken. A few nurses noticed him and moved him to a room, so no one would trip over him.

He came to a couple of hours later, and a nurse came rushing into the room. She told him, "Sonic the Hedgehog...?"  
>Sonic nodded, "That's me. What's going on?"<p>

The nurse told him, "Your wife is asking for you. She's fully dilated, but she refuses to push until you're there."

Sonic frowned, having read a few pregnancy books and remembering that refusing to push could cause complications in the mother and baby. He said, "Then hurry and take me to her. I don't wanna lose the baby!"

The female nurse nodded and told him, "All right, sir. Just let one of the other nurses prep you. The room has been sterilized for the new baby and we don't want you to get germs everywhere."

Sonic responded, "That's fine, do what you have to. Just let me see Blaze!"

The female nurse led him to the prep room, then left to go back to where Blaze was giving birth.

A male nurse came in and helped Sonic get ready. He asked, "First baby?"

Sonic blushed a little, "Am I that obvious?"

The guy answered as he put large rubber gloves over Sonic's normal ones, "Yeah you are. You fainted after she was taken away. The other nurses said it was pretty obvious you had been holding in the urge to though. I gotta commend you for that."

Sonic laughed a little at himself, embarrassed, "Uhh...thanks, I guess. Anyway, can I go in _now_? Please? I'm really worried about Blaze and the baby."

The guy nodded, "Yeah, go on in. You're clear."

Sonic nodded back and ran into the birthing room. He noticed that Blaze looked like she was in a lot of pain and really tired. He asked, "Blaze, how are you doing? Apart from the obvious, of course."

Blaze seemed relieved that Sonic was okay and told him, "I'm scared, Sonic. I don't know...ugh...if I can do this!" She screamed in pain as another contraction racked through her body. The baby was really trying hard to get out.

Sonic took her hand and told her, "Listen, Blaze. I know you can! If you're strong enough to guard the Sol Emeralds, you're strong enough to have this baby. I won't leave your side. Now, push! Lance won't get a chance to live if you don't. He and I are counting on you." He kissed her on the cheek.

Blaze nodded, "You're...right, Sonic. I _can _do this. I won't let you two down." She pushed really hard now, screaming because of the sharp pain it was causing in her lower back. Lance's head and shoulders were forced out because of the intensity of Blaze's push. It wouldn't take much more on Blaze's part for him to be all the way out.

Sonic smiled at her progress and told her, even though he was a little pale and shaky because of all the blood and gore, "That's the way, Blaze! I see his head and shoulders. Just one giant push from you oughta be enough to push him all the way out. You can do this!" He kept encouraging her, despite how dizzy he felt.

Blaze nodded and let out another scream, pushing as hard as she could once again. The force of Blaze's push was indeed enough to get Lance the rest of the way out. One of the nurses cut the cord, not trusting Sonic's shaky hands to do so.

Lance began crying right after this was done, announcing his life to the world.

Blaze then delived the placenta. It caused a bit of discomfort for her, but after it was done, all was well. She fell asleep after that.

Lance was taken to the nursery in the hospital for a few hours of monitoring. After that, he was taken back to Sonic and Blaze.

Blaze was now asleep on Sonic's chest, as he had carefully picked her up a bit to get underneath her.. He knew she would feel the most comfort being that close to him. Hearing her snoring, the blue blur left out a soft chuckle. When the baby was brought to them, he smiled and softly told the nurse, "Thank you for bringing him in." He adjusted Blaze so she was sleeping leaning against his right side, then held his arms and hands out to take little Lance.

The nurse nodded, "You're welcome. Here you go." She handed him over carefully and gently, knowing full well how vulnerable babies were.

Sonic took him just as gently and carefully, smiling at the infant in his arms. The baby definitely looked like a good combination of his traits and Blaze's traits. He still had some down on his fur, and it was the same shade of blue as him. However, some of the fur underneath was peeking out and it was indigo in color. His muzzle was peach, much like his father's, as were his arms. However, he was pretty rambunctious for a little one. He groaned again and tried to move his arms within the swaddling blanket, feeling somewhat restrained.

Lance opened his eyes and looked at his father, and they were revealed to be a deep emerald green, much like his father's. Although he couldn't coo or make any other noises than a soft whine or groan, you could tell from the moment he laid eyes on his father that the two instantly bonded.

Blaze woke up a few seconds later and smiled at father and son. She said softly, "He looks a lot like you, Sonic."

Sonic responded quietly, "Yeah, but you're there too. We did it, Blaze. We made a good thing happen."

Blaze smiled and nodded in agreement, "Yes, we did." She kissed him on the cheek, then yawned again. She held out her arms to take Lance.

Sonic obliged and handed the baby over, thinking she needed a chance to hold him. He was such a well-behaved kid. At least...for now. Who knew what the future held?

Blaze took Lance and began to talk to him softly, then began to softly sing him a lullaby she had heard as a little kid, though it was only half-remembered.

Lance yawned and went to sleep again.

Sonic asked, "Where'd you learn that, Blaze? It put him right back to sleep."

Blaze responded, "My...parents sang it to me when I was a little kid. I'm surprised I remembered as much as I did." She rocked Lance gently, then yawned again and fell asleep with Lance in her arms.

Sonic smiled and put an arm around Blaze and Lance. The future was sure to be interesting with these two, and hopefully they would have a couple of more. Despite the fact that Blaze and he had both been afraid, he had actually found the experience quite refreshing.


	14. Chapter 14

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 14

About a month later, Blaze was sitting in the relatively brand-new nursery, feeding Lance. It was a somewhat rainy and cloudy day, though occassionally the sun would peek out from behind the clouds. She seemed very at peace, and Sonic wouldn't do anything to disrupt that. He watched mother and son quietly and protectively. He would die before he let anything happen to them. As Blaze was about to switch Lance over to her other breast, she and Sonic both heard something and she held Lance close, slightly afraid of what it could be.

Sonic glared and stood in front of her and Lance, ready to face whatever was coming. A moment later, several robots came into their house, followed by Eggman. Eggman said, "Well well, what do we have here? Sonic and Blaze caught off their guard? A rare moment, to be sure."

Sonic replied, "I'm not off my guard, Eggman. Quite the contrary, I'm more ready to face you than I've ever been." He started attacking the robots right away, not about to let them harm Blaze or Lance in any way. As he got down to the last one, Eggman laughed, having been holding back his strongest robot. He told Sonic, "I hope you're ready for the grand finale, Sonic, because this robot far surpasses Emerl, even Omega. He was only recently developed." He pressed a button and the curled up form of a robot dropped down from the Eggmobile.

As it uncurled, it was revealed to have Shadow at its core, running off of his life force. Apparently Eggman had captured him at some point in the last few weeks and knew full well that Sonic would not go up against one of his allies. Sonic growled and said, "Eggman, how could you do that to Shadow after everything he's went through in the past few weeks?"

Eggman chuckled, "I don't know what you're talking about, Sonic, but I figure that under a lot of duress, Shadow operates better than anyone I know. So, I took off his rings and am using all his power to use this robot. I hope you enjoy fighting it!"

However, Shadow appeared to be keeping the robot under tight control, not attacking Sonic and merely sitting there in the robot shell, staying curled up because of the intense pain of his body ripping itself apart. He told Sonic, "Sonic...please, you have to defeat this robot! Maybe I have no chance of living, but you, Blaze and your young son still do!" A moment later, awakened by Shadow's plea to Sonic, the robot began to come to life, drawing its energy from Shadow.

Shadow let out a cry of pain, then collapsed to the floor of the core. Even though some of the dangerous excess Chaos energy had been taken, his body was still trying to tear itself apart. However, remembering about his promise to Maria, and the fact that he had a child of his own on the way, gave the ebony hedgehog the motivation he needed to hold on. He used all the strength he had to hold the robot back, not wanting to hurt Sonic.

Eggman smirked, "I thought it might come to that. That's why I put this in there." He took out a remote control and pressed a button on it. It would override Shadow's command of the robot and enable him to attack Sonic regardless of what Shadow told the robot to do.

Shadow let out a yelp as he felt an electrical surge go through the robot's shell. What had just happened? What was Eggman doing? He shouted, "What did you just do, doctor?"

Eggman told him, "I overrided your control of the robot with a simple press of a button. Now, regardless of what you tell it to do, the robot will attack Sonic, drawing on your energy until you die."

Sonic gasped at hearing this, "Die? No, Eggman, I won't let you kill Shadow!" He curled up into a ball and hit the Eggmobile, causing Eggman to drop the remote, although it was already too late. The robot was advancing on Blaze and Lance. He growled again and leapt in front of them, "If you think I'm letting you hurt them, think again, Eggman! I'll find a way to save everyone!"

Shadow shouted at Sonic from within the core of the robot, "Stay back, Sonic, don't try to get in its way! You might get killed!"

Sonic smiled, "I'm not afraid to die, Shadow, especially not to protect Blaze and my son." He then looked to Eggman, "Well, what's it gonna be? Call off the robot and release Shadow? Or am I gonna have to be unnecessarily rough?"

Eggman smirked, "Do your worst. That robot is made of the strongest metal I could find, so breaking it won't be quite as easy as it was with the other ones."

Sonic replied, "Yeah, we'll see about that." He leapt at the robot, using a Homing Attack. As he bounced off of it, and landed back in front of Blaze and Lance, he was shocked to see that it had taken no damage. Or rather, was repairing itself. He heard Shadow crying out in pain within the core and glared, "What's going on, Eggman?"

Eggman told him, "I finally developed a robot with the ability to repair itself using Chaos energy, and since Shadow's body is crawling with it at the moment..."

Sonic glared and finished, "It's taking the energy from him to heal itself. That's just great..." The robot fired a laser beam at his chest a moment later, but he didn't dare move. He knew that either Lance or Blaze would get hurt if he did, and that wasn't something he wanted to see happen. He collapsed to his knees, clutching the right side of his chest and panting at the extreme burning sensation.

Eggman smirked, "Heh, a little more than you bargained for, Sonic?"

Sonic rose to his feet again, ignoring the pain of his injury, "Maybe so, but if you think I'm just gonna give up, you've got another thing coming, Eggman!" He leapt again at the robot, using a Spin Attack.

The robot swatted him back, then pinned him to the wall near Blaze, crushing him.

Blaze's eyes teared up and she shouted, "Stop! Leave Sonic alone! I'll go with you or whatever you want! Just don't kill him, please!" She wouldn't be able to bear it if Sonic died on her behalf, for she didn't want their child to have to grow up without a father.

Eggman smirked, "That's more like it, Blaze." He pressed a button on the Eggmobile and a large hook came out the bottom of it. It went around Blaze and Lance.

Sonic struggled beneath the weight of the robot, breathing hard and coughing up blood because of his fractured ribs. He managed to shout, "Blaze! Lance! Nooo!" All of a sudden, the Chaos Emeralds appeared around him, as if they were trying to help the blue hedgehog protect his family. Although his battered body was tired, he closed his eyes and Chaos energy flowed into him from the Emeralds, enabling him to become Super Sonic. He fired pure Chaos energy through the head of the robot, not wanting to harm Shadow.

The robot was damaged, but Shadow remained untouched. Sonic, still in super form, asked him, "Where did Eggman put your power rings?"

Shadow replied weakly, "He's got them inside his Eggmobile."

Sonic nodded, "I'll get it then, since Blaze is somewhat hooked on it at the moment too." He flew over to Eggman and demanded, "Give me my family back, and return Shadow's power rings!"

Eggman smirked, "Or what? Maybe you did destroy the head of my robot and free Shadow, but it's still perfectly capable of operating without him inside." He said, "My minion, activate independent servers and destroy Shadow and Super Sonic!"

The robot roared to life and started firing off its lasers.

Sonic grabbed Shadow and dodged each beam, smirking. Since he was in Super form, he was faster and more agile, despite his body's bad condition. He taunted the robot, "Is that the best you can do? I'm getting bored already."

Shadow rolled his eyes and told him, "Careful, Sonic. Your ego is showing." He then let out a cry of agony, his body still trying to tear itself apart since he didn't have his power rings.

Sonic heard Shadow's cry and frowned, "We gotta get you your power rings." He set the black hedgehog on the ground and flew over to Eggman. He smashed the front of the Eggmobile and Shadow's power rings fell out. He snatched them up and put them back on Shadow's arms, "There, is that better?"

Shadow nodded, "Yes, much. Thank you, Sonic." He glared at Eggman, "We're going to teach you a lesson, once and for all. Are you ready, Sonic?"

Sonic smiled and nodded, "More than ever."

Eggman told them, "Now hang on, you two. Don't forget that I have Blaze right here. Any attack you make on me might also hit her."

Shadow cursed and said, "He's right. We'll have to be careful."

Sonic responded, "Darn it, let them go, Eggman! What has Lance ever done to you? He's innocent in all this!"

Eggman replied, "Maybe he is, but you and Blaze have caused me enough trouble on your own. He is the perfect specimen for my next experiment."

Blaze hissed and told him, "If you think I'll let you make my son into some type of guinea pig, think again, Eggman!" She held Lance really close to her chest and threw a fireball at Eggman with her free hand, setting his mustache on fire.

Eggman smacked at his face, putting out the fire before it totally consumed his mustache. He then told Sonic and Blaze, "All right, you asked for this!" He tugged Lance free of Blaze's arms and put a shocker collar on him.

Blaze lunged at Eggman, "Give me my son back, you bastard!" She tried to get Lance back, all the maternal instinct within her released.

Eggman told her, "Nah-ah." He pressed a button and the shock collar activated, shocking the baby hedgehog.

Lance let out a scream, then began bawling, not understanding what was going on.

Sonic and Blaze both flinched and were frozen for a moment, afraid that permanent harm had befallen their son.

Then, Sonic flew over to the Eggmobile and destroyed the collar with Chaos energy, as he was still in Super form. He would make Eggman pay for that, and dearly. As he was about to punch Eggman relentlessly for causing his son undue pain, the robot came up behind him and grabbed him. He struggled hard, but the robot managed to get the Chaos Emeralds out of him and he returned to his normal self. Even though he was banged up pretty bad, Sonic still tried to rescue Blaze and Lance. He said, "Eggman, you let them go!"

Eggman chuckled and said, "Not a chance, Sonic. As long as I have them, I hold your future in my very hands."

Sonic cursed slightly and lunged at the Eggmobile, being careful not to hit Blaze and Lance. However, some kind of shield came up and bounced him back, causing him to drop and land on his head. He rubbed his head, dazed for the moment and hurting all over from the beating he had received.

However, Eggman flew up higher in response, getting out of his reach.

In the distance, Metal Sonic watched everything happening, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.

Blaze called out, worried about her husband, "Sonic!" She could tell that the battle was taking its toll on him. "Stop the fighting, now! If you're going to capture me and our son, just do so already and stop tormenting Sonic!"

Eggman smirked, "Gladly my dear." He began to fly away.

Sonic called after them, "Blaze, you and Lance hang in there! I'll come for you!" Tears were in his eyes as he fell to his knees, the long battle catching up with him and worried that something might happen to his young family in his absence.

Blaze shouted back, "I know you will! Don't worry, I'll do everything I can!" She was worried about Sonic too. He had been hurt so badly.

Shadow, not about to let their lives be ruined because of his promise to Maria to help others live happy lives, turned into Super Shadow and flew after the Eggmobile. He flew straight through the cable connecting the hook holding Blaze and Lance to the vehicle, like a knife through butter. He then shouted to Sonic as he noticed them plummeting toward the ground, "Catch them, Sonic!"

Sonic smiled and nodded, having followed. Seeing Shadow in Super form just to help him out, made him feel all the better about having helped him out of a slump, "Gladly." He ignored the pain of his injuries for the moment and leapt up into the air, grabbing Blaze and Lance and setting them gently on the ground. As he was about to run back towards his house with the two of them, he felt something metallic grab his leg, effectively tripping him and causing him to drop the two most important people in his life at the moment.

It was Metal Sonic. The robot appeared determined to ruin Sonic's life by helping Eggman at the moment. He said, "Dr. Eggman, I will hold off Sonic. You just get Blaze and his son out of here."

Eggman smirked and nodded, "Thank you, Metal." He turned to Sonic, "You see, my minions are all loyal to me in the end. Even if they say they are acting on their own agendas, they know who their real boss is. Thankfully, I put more than one hook in this thing." He pressed another button and a flame-resistant hook came out of the bottom of his Eggmobile and wrapped around Blaze and Lance. He then left the area, not giving Blaze or Sonic a chance to retaliate.

Sonic was already making his way to follow them, but Metal's attacks were endless.

Shadow, still in Super Form, fired off some Chaos Spears to effectively end the battle for Sonic so that he could go save his family. However, it appeared to be too late. Eggman was gone. He sighed and went back to normal, "Sonic, you can stop fighting. Eggman has them."

Sonic, feeling hope starting to leave him, continued to fight despite the fact that it was fruitless now. He punched Metal in the stomach, taking out his frustration on his robot double, "You stupid piece of shit! If I hadn't been dealing with your stupid ass, I would've been able to save Blaze! Now I might lose them cause of you!" He continued pummeling the robot, making dent after dent in its body.

Shadow held him back after a while, feeling that the robot had probably had enough. He said, "Sonic, calm down. That's not doing any good. I know you're worried, but destroying Metal Sonic won't solve anything. We need to come up with a strategy to rescue your wife and son."

Sonic nodded, "You're right...but I'll be damned if I let Eggman kill them."

Shadow responded, "We're not gonna let that happen. Come on, let's get to the others and start formulating a strategy for the ambush of Eggman's base."

Sonic asked, "Will Knuckles be able to though? I mean, he does have the twins to think about now..."

Shadow told him, "He can ask Amy to babysit. It's not like she had anything else planned anyway."

Sonic sighed and nodded, "Fine. Let's go then." He walked off, staring at the empty space where Blaze and Lance had been. It felt like part of him was missing. He felt..incomplete and lost without them. He hoped the rescue wouldn't take too long. Being separated from Blaze was never an easy thing, and Lance was only a small infant. Neither deserved to be a prisoner and he was going to ensure that they didn't stay that way long.

As the two of them made their way back, Sonic fell to the ground, beginning to feel the physical toll of the battle more now that they were some distance from where his family had been taken from him. His fractured ribs _hurt _and _a lot_ now that there wasn't adrenaline and Chaos Energy pumping through his body and making an effective numbing agent. Even breathing was starting to get painful and that wasn't good. He wheezed painfully, lying on the ground.

Shadow saw Sonic fall and helped him up. He figured it was the least he could do after Sonic had saved him on several occasions. He said, "Sonic...your ribs are broken. Why did you keep on battling? You could have been killed."

Sonic smiled at him and answered, "I kept battling because it was the right thing to do. It wouldn't be right to let Eggman take them away...without..." He wheezed and coughed a little blood, then said, "putting up some kind of fight, right?"

Shadow nodded, "Very true. There is no greater purpose in battling than to do it for the ones you care for. Come on, let's get you to a hospital. We can make a contingency plan there to help Blaze and Lance."

Sonic nodded and blacked out, the pain of his fractured ribs too much.

Upon arriving at the hospital with the unconscious blue hedgehog, Shadow explained the situation to one of the nurses, who admitted Sonic and took him to the OR. After a long operation, Sonic was put in a room and left there.

Shadow called Amy, Tails and Knuckles. He didn't call Rouge, as he was still sore at her for not telling him she was pregnant before she had. Well...actually, he did try, but she wasn't home so he left her a message telling her that Sonic was in the hospital and that she should come whenever she feels like it, just as long as he isn't there too. Even just being in the same room as the sultry bat made him nervous. Not that he would tell anyone or show that.


	15. Chapter 15

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 15: A Week or Two Later...

Amy gave a small sigh as she went into Knuckles' apartment, ready to watch after Kotton and Kolin. She had already been by the hospital to see Sonic, and he had told her that she needed to babysit for Knuckles while they made plans to help his son and wife. It was still hard to see him sometimes, but she was defintitely a lot more controlled around him. Then she had been. Seeing Knuckles, she smiled and nodded, "Hi Knuckles. I'm here if you wanna go on to the hospital to help Sonic and them."

Knuckles responded, "How is he? Did he seem all right when you left the hospital?"

Amy replied, "Well, he was all right. He can breathe on his own now, which is a definite improvement from when I first got there this morning. They had to have him on a ventilator then."

Knuckles nodded and set Kotton down in her crib. He then walked out into the hallway and stood next to her. He said, "Thank you for doing this. You didn't have to. I'm sure you wanted to help out too."

Amy smiled, "Maybe so, but...it's nice to get a break from all that sometimes. You're welcome." She blushed after she said this, a little embarrassed by how close he was standing to her. Despite the fact that she had tried not to develop feelings for him or for Shadow because of their connection to Sonic, she had developed feelings for both of them and didn't know how to say it. For once in her life, she was scared to say anything to the person (or in this case, persons) she loved.

Knuckles realized why she was blushing and glanced at the floor, also a bit embarrassed by their proximity. He then said, "Well, uhh...I guess, I better get going. Thank you again." He walked over to the crib and bent over the railing. He picked up Kotton and hugged her and kissed her on the cheek, just in case something should happen. He then did the same with Kolin, then walked out the door, blushing as he accidentally brushed against Amy on his way out of the apartment, "I'll see you later."

Amy nodded and went into the twins' room. She sat in the rocking chair near the crib that Knuckles had set up, and waited. Hopefully, this rescue would not take very long and she could think of what to say to Shadow. Her feelings for him were a little stronger than the ones she had for Knuckles.

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Knuckles arrived and asked, "So, what's the plan?"

Sonic nodded, "We've come up with a little something, but I wanted to wait to implement it until you got here."

Tails sighed, "Sonic, you're hurt. You _really __**shouldn't **_be involved at all." He looked to Knuckles and said, "Our plan was for Shadow to Chaos Control in on one side and Sonic and me to fly in on the other. But..."

Knuckles nodded, then said, "But?"

Tails replied, "But I don't think Sonic should be involved at all. I think you should do what he was going to. The doctor said, after Amy left, that his ribs haven't fully healed."

Shadow spoke up and said, "Sonic, the fact that you're not fully healed is not good. If you try to help, you'll only make things worse on yourself. And trust me, you don't..." He trailed off, his cell phone ringing. Letting out a slight sigh, the ebony hegehog walked out of the room and answered it, "Hello?"

Rouge was on the other side of the line and said, "Shadow...I'm sorry to call you on such short notice, but I have to go to a doctor's appointment to find out the sex of my baby. Did you wanna come along or anything? After all, in a little while, he or she will be yours."

Shadow told her, "Go on your own. It was your decision to drug me and coerce me to have sex with you, so you can deal with the consequences on your own." He hung up and went back into the room, visibly pissed.

Sonic, guessing by his demeanor that it had been Rouge who called, asked, "Everything okay, Shadow?"

Shadow sighed and told him, "Just Rouge trying to force me to be more in her life when I want nothing to do with her. Nothing to worry about." He then added, "Anyway, if we're doing this, let's do it. Sonic, Knuckles can do your part of the plan just as easily as you can, so just stay here and heal while the rest of us get your wife and son back. You helped me through a crisis...let me return the favor."

Sonic sighed and nodded, "All right, but you better not get hurt. You have a son or daughter on the way and I don't want to be the reason he or she is an orphan."

Shadow smirked, "You give yourself far too much credit. It would've been my decision, not yours." He looked to Knuckles and Tails, "Are we ready?"

Tails nodded, "Yeah."

Knuckles also nodded and they left Sonic in his room, going to get Blaze and Lance using the plans they had made. They left him with a communication unit and a laptop computer though, so he could monitor their progress and hear from Blaze and Lance once they got them back.

As the team entered Eggman's base, Sonic spoke to them and asked, "Are you all still okay?"

Tails sighed and spoke into his unit, saying, "We're fine, Sonic. Stop being so paranoid. I know you're worried about Blaze and Lance, but please don't take that out on us right now. We're under enough pressure as it is." He looked to Knuckles and said, "We should probably try and find the computer room. There's probably a map or something in there."

Knuckles nodded and replied, "Right, but he probably didn't make it easy to find. This _is _a new base, so he probably designed it totally different from his other ones."

Tails smirked and said, "Not a problem. Before I went to see Sonic, I made a watch that can pick up computer network frequencies. It's still in the testing stages, but I brought it with me anyway." He moved his arm up slightly, to show them, "I figured that this mission would be as good a test as any."

Shadow smirked and nodded, "Okay then. Let's put your gadget to the test."

Tails nodded and turned on the watch by pressing a button on the left side of the outer casing. It started beeping right away, although there was a small click in between each of the beeps, showing that they were still some distance from the origin of the network frequencies, "Okay, there are some network frequencies, but they're very faint. We're still pretty far away from where the computer room is." He turned to the left and the clicks decreased while the beeps became more frequent. He then said, "It's that way."

Knuckles and Shadow nodded.

Shadow led the way, followed closely by Tails and Knuckles. As they made their way to the computer room, they ran into some robots. Giving a slight sigh, the ebony hedgehog told Knuckles and Tails, "You two go on. I'll take care of these."

Tails' watch was starting to beep sporadically, showing that they had been pretty close. He nodded and said, "Okay...just be careful Shadow. I don't want anything to happen to you."

Sonic spoke through his comm unit as well, "Yeah, please."

Shadow told them, smirking, "Yeah, no pressure, right?"

Tails sighed and shook his head as he and Knuckles ran around the robots, heading right into the computer room and leaving Shadow to deal with the robots. He downloaded the map data he got from one of the computers onto his watch before a wailing siren went off and a cage fell down around him. He yelped and tried to punch the bars, but nothing happened, "Knuckles!"

Sonic, hearing his little brother's panic, asked, "Knuckles, what the hell happened?"

Knuckles replied, "Relax, Sonic. A cage came down around Tails, but I can easily break it. Just get down Tails. I don't want to accidentally hit you too."

Tails nodded and lay on the floor as much as the cage would allow so Knuckles could bust the bars.

Knuckles broke the cage easily and frowned, "That was far too easy...Eggman must have something else up his sleeve." He spoke too soon. A moment later, a loud screech was heard over the comm units and Tails and he flinched, taking off their ear pieces. After the screech stopped, Tails checked on the comm units and frowned, "Oh great...Eggman overloaded them. They're broken and don't work at all. There's nothing but static, and I' mguessing that the static is probably Sonic wondering what the hell happened."

Knuckles asked, "Can you fix them?"

Tails replied, "I can, but...it'll take some time. Why don't you take my watch and use the map I got to find Blaze and Lance? I know you're not used to working alone, but...it's for Sonic. Please say you'll do it."

Knuckles nodded, "Of course." He took Tails' watch, then asked, "Is there anyway to change it so it just picks up excess heat or energy signatures?"

Tails blinked, "Oh, yeah...here." He walked over and pressed the other button on the right side of the watch, changing it to pick up heat and energy. "That should do it. Good luck, Knuckles." He gave his friend a slight hug, just in case. He knew Knuckles could take care of himself, but it still wasn't easy to let him do something this important alone.

Knuckles smiled and patted the young fox's head before walking away, following the map and also using the watch's heat and energy detection ability, heading toward the basement. He jumped slightly as the watch started beeping intermittently, showing that he was quite close to some sort of energy field. He looked around the basically desolate area and soon saw Blaze, chained to the wall and looking quite exhausted. She was also in tears. He went over and asked, "Blaze? What the hell happened? Why are you so tired and upset?"

Blaze answered weakly, "He took Lance into a lab. And now he's using him for different kinds of experiments...I'm scared of what might happen to him."  
>Knuckles told her, "Oh. Well, hold still and I'll get you down." He clung to the wall and began to climb it, using his sharp knuckles. He got to where Blaze was dangling from and ripped out where the chains were all connected, freeing her. He moved quickly to catch her as she fell, still wondering why she was so weak. He then asked, "Did you use your powers?"<p>

Blaze nodded, "To try and melt the chains and try and stop Eggman, yeah." She could barely even stand after he caught her, showing how big of a risk she was willing to take her for her son.

Knuckles replied, "Okay, just stay here and wait for me then. Find a good place to hide though. We don't want you getting caught again."

Blaze responded, "Okay, I will. Just be careful. I don't want to..."

Knuckles sighed and finished, "Be the reason that the twins are orphans. I know. Sonic gave Shadow and me a similar speech."

Blaze gasped, "So...he's okay?"

Knuckles answered, "He's...all right considering everything that happened. He's still in the hospital, but they're supposed to release him at the end of the week."

Blaze sighed and nodded, "I'm glad to hear he's on the mend. I've been really worried about him ever since Lance and I got here. Please, let me go with you and help.I know I don't have much energy, but what I do have, I want to use to help my son. Please?"

Knuckles sighed, "Fine, just stick close to me." The two of them headed out of the dungeon, following the beeping of the watch. Though he had gotten to Blaze, Lance still emitted a strong fire-based energy, which was making the watch beep some more. As they followed the energy, some robots appeared and Knuckles growled, "Blaze, get..." Before he could finish what he was saying, Blaze had leapt into the fight and melted the robots. He then sighed and walked over, noticing her swooning. He said, "You should've let me handle it. You won't be any good to anyone if you keep burning your energy at this rate."

Blaze replied, "I know you're right, but...it's my son. What kind of mother would I be if I didn't do everything I could? I failed him by letting Eggman take him from me."

Knuckles told her, "You didn't fail anybody, Blaze! Eggman's evil and a genius. The two things are never a good combination for anyone. We'll get your son back." He patted her shoulder reassuredly as he carried her to the next area. After fighting some robots, they finally reached the lab, where they could hear Lance screaming and Eggman cackling.

Blaze hissed and her hands lit on fire, showing her anger at Eggman screwing around with her son.

Knuckles dropped her, so his fur wouldn't be caught on fire, "Blaze, put it out, please. I know you're really upset at this, but like I said, you won't be good to anyone if you burn out your energy before we get him back."

Blaze nodded and put out the flames. She told him, "Just be careful and don't hit my son when you go to beat up Eggman. He's been through enough."

Knuckles nodded and jumped up behind Eggman, hitting him in the back of the head. He then busted open the capsule that Lance was trapped inside, carefully. He picked up the young infant and tucked him under his arm as he ran out of the area, so they could get out before Eggman realized what happened. When he got into the area he had run into Blaze at, he quietly said, "Blaze...where are you hiding?"

Blaze came out from behind a statue and smiled, saying, "I'm right here. I noticed robots advancing on you when you hit Eggman, so I melted them...with...some more of my fire." She fell to her knees, too weak to even move.

Knuckles sighed and handed her Lance, "Here, you take him and I'll carry you back to where Tails is. From there, we'll head back to Shadow and leave the base. Hopefully he hasn't tired himself out."

Blaze nodded and took Lance, as Knuckles picked her up and carried her back to Tails. He asked, "Tails, did you fix the comm units?"

Tails replied, "Yeah...Blaze! You got them, Knuckles! I'm so glad. I was...a little uneasy about letting you do this alone, but I'm glad you didn't let us down." He grinned and said, "Yeah, they're fixed. Sonic's coming through loud and clear."

Sonic said, "Tails, what's going on? Did you guys get them?"

Tails laughed and said, "Yeah, Knuckles just got here with them. Do you want to talk to them?"

Sonic pleaded, "Yes, please, let me."

Tails placed his earpiece in Blaze's ear and said, "Someone wants to talk to you."

Blaze spoke, saying, "Sonic, are you there? Are you okay?"

Sonic sighed in relief and said, "Yeah, are you all right?"

Blaze replied, "...Really tired...and maybe...a little sick, but otherwise okay."

Sonic asked her, "What happened?"

Knuckles took his comm unit, then said, "We'll tell you when we get back. We really need to get out of here or Eggman will be all over us with his robots."

Sonic answered, "All right, Knux. Sheesh. I'll see you when you get here, Blaze. I love you."

Blaze smiled and said, "Yeah, I love you too. See ya." She gave Tails back his ear piece and then shivered, her body cooling off too much from where she had overused her power. She coughed a little.

Knuckles frowned, "You really don't look so good. Let's head back, Tails."

Tails nodded and took his watch back. He then lead the way out, heading back to where they had left Shadow. He found the hedgehog barely-conscious on the floor, his power rings removed, "What? Shadow...?" He picked up the power rings and slipped them back on his arms, "Why the hell did you take them off?"

Shadow answered, "I had to. The robot swarms increased up here after Knuckles left us to go find Blaze. There was...no choice." He suppressed a yawn and said, "Let's head back."

Blaze said, "That's...what we were...planning on." She blacked out in Knuckles' arms.

Frowning, Knuckles handed Blaze and Lance over to Shadow, "Chaos Control them to the hospital. Blaze really isn't doing well at all. She only told Sonic she was okay so he wouldn't worry from far away." He glanced at the infant Lance, who was lightly hitting Blaze's right breast with his head, indicating to everyone around him that he was hungry.

Tails sighed and said, "We'll have to feed Lance somehow. Apparently he's starving."

Shadow took the baby from Blaze, ignoring the screaming and handing him over to Knuckles and Tails, "He can eat when we get back. We have to make sure Blaze is okay first. Sonic won't be happy if she's sick when we get there, and I doubt he would want his son to get whatever Blaze has if she has anything."

Knuckles asked, "Is it possible that whatever's wrong with her is just linked to her powers? I mean, she did use them a lot when we were getting Lance back."

Tails nodded, "Probably, but still...if Lance got her powers, we don't want him to get too cold. We'll meet you there, Shadow."

Shadow nodded and teleported Blaze to Sonic's room, hoping the blue blur was up to trying to warm her up. He said, "Sonic...Blaze is not well. Ignore what she told you. She overused her powers trying to get Lance back, and needs to be warmed up. Are you willing?"

Sonic nodded, "Yes. Anything to save her."

Shadow responded, "Okay." He called for a nurse and told her to bring some blankets and make it snappy. He then lay Blaze on the other bed in the room.

Sonic got in bed near her, using his body heat to try and start the warming process.

A little while later, a nurse came back with some blankets and handed them to Shadow.

Shadow took the blankets to Sonic, who placed them on top of Blaze.

Sonic lay next to Blaze, stroking her face and doing everything he could to help her warm up.

Blaze woke up when Knuckles and Tails got back, feeling better and her body temperature returning to normal. She smiled at Sonic and said, "Hey." She realized Lance wasn't in her arms and asked, "Oh no! Where's-?"

Tails cut her off and said, "It's okay, Blaze. He's right here." He brought Lance over and said, "He's starving so you woke up just in time." He then handed her to Blaze, who unhooked her top and began to feed him.

Sonic sat in such a way that his head was blocking the view to Blaze. He didn't want anyone staring at his wife. He then said, "Blaze...I'm sorry."

Blaze sighed and said, "Sonic, it's okay. It's not your fault, you did everything you could."  
>A nurse came in to check on Sonic a short while later and smiled, "I've got good news. You can go home tonight, Sonic. You made a more speedy recovery than we thought you would."<p>

Blaze smiled with tears in her eyes, "Oh Sonic...it's going to be so wonderful to have you home again, and Lance...we'll be a regular family, even if it's not for very long." She reached up and kissed Sonic on the cheek, overjoyed from hearing the nurse's news.

That evening, Sonic, Blaze and Lance had a pretty quiet one. There was no interference from anyone, not even Knuckles.

However, for the echidna himself, it was quite a different story. Shadow had come by briefly for parenting advice, to prepare for the birth of his child. He probably wouldn't be there for the actual birth, but he would be taking charge of his child after its birth, and he wanted to be sure he was ready. Knuckles had told him a few things, then sent him on his way. He had his own kids to take care of, after all.

Weeks passed by and they were relatively normal weeks except for the occassional fight with Eggman. Rouge was making her way to her second job, when she felt a slight wetness in between her thighs and gasped, "Oh shit...not now." She screamed as a contraction came.

Shadow happened to be nearby and heard her scream. He came running and said, "Rouge, what the hell is going on? Why are you on the ground?"

Rouge panted and said, "I'm...giving birth, Shadow! Get me to a hospital, please! After all...maybe you didn't want to do that, but you still did just the same!"

Shadow narrowed his crimson eyes, not liking the way she said it, but picked her up anyway and Chaos Controlled to the hospital again, hoping it wouldn't have any negative effects. He had a feeling that his son would be able to stand it, even if Rouge herself couldn't.

A nurse noticed Rouge and Shadow and quickly rolled over a gurney, "Put her on here and we'll get her to labor and delivery."

Shadow placed Rouge on the gurney lightly, then watched as she was taken away quietly.

He then called everyone to let them know what was up. A little while later, Sonic and the others arrived and he blinked, surprised to see them all there. "Sonic, Blaze, Knuckles...? Surprised to see all of you considering your life circumstances right now."

Knuckles said, "Yeah, well, don't be. I know just how tricky childbirth is and how it can be for the dad, so...I'm here for you. Let's make this quick though. The twins are only down for a nap and those only usually last an hour, if that."

Sonic told him, "Shadow, I was here for you when you told me what Rouge did. I have to see this thing all the way through. Cause I know any kid of yours will have a real problem." He grinned jokingly.

Shadow nodded and waited.

In labor and delivery, Rouge was progressing nicely with the birth and soon, out came Sly, a little gray bathog with her eye color, wing tips on his back and red stripes on his spines and the inner parts of his ears, which looked like hers as well. The nurse tried to hand him to her, but she put a hand up and said, "Give him to the father. It's the least I can do after what I did to him."

The nurse nodded and brought Sly out to his father, "Shadow the Hedgehog?"

Shadow turned around and nodded, "Yeah, that's me. How is the baby?"

The nurse answered, smiling, "He's perfectly healthy."

Shadow asked, "And Rouge?"  
>The nurse told him, "She's fine too. Well, as fine as she can be, considering."<p>

Shadow nodded, "What's his name?"

The nurse told him, "She said to let you pick the name. She thought you'd come up with better ones."

Shadow sighed and thought a moment. He then said, "Sly. The boy's name will be recorded as Sly the Bathog. I just hope he doesn't get picked on."

Sonic smiled, "Even if he does get picked on, don't worry about it. We'll all be here to support you two." He gave a thumbs up.

Shadow gave a small smile and nodded. He then turned to the nurse, "Thank you. I believe I shall head home now."


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: I will write a story, a stand-alone, that will contain all the Sonic fanchildren I have created. Some you will recognize, some you will not. I incorporated a few of them into this story, but not all of them, as the events of the story make some of them impossible to have exist. Anyway, now that I'm done with this rant, I will proceed with Chapter 16.

From Friends to Parents: A Hedgehog's Wish

Chapter 16

The next day, very early in the morning, Shadow was awakened by the sound of the young infant, Sly, crying. He was most likely hungry or just wanting some attention from his father. The ebony hedgehog rose from his bed and went to the crib. He picked up the baby, carefully cradling his infant son's head in the crook of his arm, and sat down in the rocking chair that Rouge had given him, since she and Knuckles had separated and he had left that one in her apartment and gotten a new, more comfortable one. He proceeded to rock the infant, trying to calm him down. However, the baby did not calm down.

Shadow sighed and rose to his feet, getting slightly annoyed that it wasn't working. He mumbled, "Hmm...guess you're hungry then." He went to the refrigerator and got a bottle of formula out. Though Rouge had offered to be his son's nurse, he had declined. He didn't want anymore to do with her, even if he did feel a tinge of pity for her because she was working so hard all the time. He walked out onto the balcony of his apartment, holding bottle and baby, and watched the stars. He mumbled, "Maria...I wonder what you would have to say about this...?"

Sonic spoke from down below, holding his son as well. The 10-month-old had been crying a lot recently, and although Blaze had fed and changed and played with him, nothing seemed to work. However, once Sonic had picked him up and run him around their backyard, he had calmed down. Apparently, little Lance considered his father's running to be comforting, so the blue hedgehog had taken him out on a late-night run to try and calm him, bringing a bottle and diaper bag just in case, "She would be proud of you, Shadow."

Shadow looked down at him and said, "Would she?"

Sonic nodded, "Yes, she would. Maybe you didn't mean to...do that with Rouge since you were drunk and drugged and all that, but...he's the something good that came out of a bad situation."

Shadow smiled at the blue hedgehog, "That's surprisingly deep, even for you, Sonic. But you're right. He is. He's...my little miracle."

Sly stopped drinking a moment and stared up curiously at his father, his innocent-looking ruby eyes asking Shadow who was watching them.

Shadow sighed and held him close, muttering to his son, "It's okay. It's just Sonic, an acquaintence of mine. He has a son too, so he won't hurt us." He didn't think the little one could understand his words, but the more of his voice the baby heard, the more comfortable he would get with it. Since he hadn't been around for most of Rouge's pregnancy, the first few nights at his apartment had been really rocky and he barely got an hour of sleep because of all the wailing. But, the little one eventually got used to him, and now fully recognized his father's voice. As he held his infant son, he smirked as he watched Sonic run laps with his around the outside of his community pool. Although he didn't interact with his neighbors and the others living in the apartment complex, he did occasionally go down to the pool when others were there and swim laps. Most of the time, it was during the day when Sly was down for a nap, but sometimes it was at night. How it happened really depended on Sly's sleeping schedule. He glanced down to Sonic, who was waving and trying to get his attention, "What is it now?"

Sonic told him, "I was just gonna ask you if you wanted to come out to dinner with Blaze, Lance and me tomorrow evening."

Shadow answered, "No, that's all right.I'll just spend time with my son. Thank you for the offer though."

Sonic nodded, "You're welcome. Well, I'm gonna head home to Blaze. See ya later, Shadow." He walked off, going home.

When he got home, Blaze was groaning and twisting around in the bed, aware in her subconscious of a communication happening at that moment between Eggman and Eggman Nega.

-Meanwhile, at Eggman's base-

Eggman said, "Nega, I have some plans for a new robot, based on an old model named Gemerl. I was going to use them, but since Sonic defeated me, I've had a bit of a setback. I'll send you the plans. What would you say to a dimensional takeover? Since Blaze is no longer there."

Nega smirked and answered, "It sounds perfect. I'll see you later."

-Back with Sonic and Blaze-

After laying Lance in his crib, Sonic ran over to the bed and kissed Blaze on the cheek, trying to calm her down and get her sleeping peacefully again. He whispered, "Blaze? Are you okay?"

Blaze calmed down, as the communication had stopped, and opened her eyes, looking up at Sonic. She whispered quietly so that she wouldn't wake up Lance, who had fallen asleep during the run back to the house, "Sonic...yeah, I'm fine. I just had...I don't know if it was a dream, or a vision, or what, but...I thought I heard Eggman talking to Nega about plans to take over my dimension!"

Sonic frowned a bit, not sure if he believed her or not. She did still have a connection to the Sol Emeralds, and Eggman and Nega had spoken to each other across dimensions before. But...why would they talk so long after not doing so for so long? And why _Blaze's _dimension? What was so special there that they would want, apart from the Sol Emeralds? "I'm sorry you experienced that. Is there anything there that you can think of that they would want?"

Blaze thought a moment, then gasped, "Wait...there is a weapon there, that's highly dangerous. It drains the energy out of anything it touches. If either of them gets ahold of it and unleashes it on my people...they could very easily take over! Sonic, what're we going to do? I can't just leave Lance here by himself while we go to take care of them." She walked over to the crib and peered at Lance, who was sleeping soundly in his crib. She smiled and lightly petted his face.

Sonic put his arm around her waist and quietly replied, "You stay here with him. I'll see what I can do about stopping Eggman and Nega."

Blaze looked at him, "But...Sonic, you shouldn't do it by yourself! I also heard Eggman making plans for a new robot based on one of his older designs but with a completely new power source! If he sends it after you and you're by yourself, you could get hurt!"

Sonic sighed and kissed her cheek, telling her, "I might get hurt, but I will come back to you alive, Blaze. Don't worry about that. If it makes you feel better, I'll ask Shadow, Knuckles, and Tails to come with me too."

Blaze answered, "All right." She hugged him and said, "Go, but please, keep to your word and come back to me in one piece. I don't think I could stand being without you now." She kissed him passionately on the lips.

Sonic kissed back, smiling, "Not to worry. I'm the Fastest Thing Alive. I'll be fine." He ran out of the room and to Knuckles' apartment. He knocked on the front door and waited.

Knuckles woke up and walked to the front door, yawning. He quietly said, "Sonic? What brings you all the way here? It's 5 AM and I just got the twins to bed. What are you doing up?"

Sonic replied, "I just got my son to bed too. Umm...Blaze heard a communication between Eggman and Nega. They wanna take over her dimension, but she doesn't want to leave our son here alone and unprotected. So...I told her I would go, but she said not to go by myself. Are you free to come right now?"

Knuckles nodded, "Yeah...but, I wanna do one thing before we go. Just in case." He went into the twins' bedroom and picked up Kotton, kissing her on the forehead and telling her quietly, "I love you, baby girl." He wanted both of his children to know how much he loved them, just in case anything happened. He called Amy and asked her to come watch the twins again and told Sonic, "I'll meet you at the altar with the Master Emerald." He usually kept the gem miniaturized and in his pocket nowadays, so that he could continue his duties as a Guardian, despite being a parent.

Sonic nodded, "All right. See you later, Red." He ran to Shadow's apartment now, gathering up all his friends, as he knew they wouldn't want to stay away from the action for long. He arrived at the apartment a short while later and knocked on the door, "Yo, Shads!"

Shadow woke up with a groan and went to the door. Opening it, he told Sonic, "What's the problem now?"

Sonic replied, "Blaze's dimension is in trouble, and I need your help. I know you probably just put Sly down, but...she won't let me go unless you come along with everyone else. Are you up to stopping the plans of Eggman and Nega working together?"

Shadow smirked, "You didn't even need to ask. I'm always up to foiling the Doctor's schemes. When are we heading out?"

Sonic answered, "We're heading out pretty much right away, so...if you're gonna say goodbye to your son, you better do it now."

Shadow nodded, "I'll also need to arrange for a babysitter, so I'll meet you at the Master Emerald altar."

Sonic told him, "Okay." He then raced on to Tails' workshop, half-expecting to find him asleep, or working on a ship or plane. He walked into the open hangar part of the workshop and said, "Hey Tails! You're up awful early. Still trying to improve your plane?"

Tails replied, "Yeah...I always get up early to get started on that. Anyway, what brings you over here?"

Sonic answered, "I'm heading to Blaze's dimension to save her people from Eggman and Nega. Are you up to coming right now or would you rather keep tinkering?"

Tails smirked, "Heh...did you even need to ask? Of course I'm coming with you. But...what about Blaze? Shouldn't she be coming too?"

Sonic told him, "She doesn't want to leave Lance here by himself, and I can understand why. I told her I would take care of it and she was fine with that as long as I had someone with me."

Tails replied, "Oh, well... is it all right if I bring Marine? She might be useful in helping us navigate."

Sonic nodded, "Of course." He smirked, "You like her or something?"

Tails blushed, "N-no, of course not! I just think she could be helpful."

Sonic smirked, "Then why are you blushing?"

Tails replied, "...Just shut up. I'll meet you with Marine at the Master Emerald altar later."

Sonic chuckled and nodded, "Okay, see you there." He ran off, heading back to Blaze and Lance, to give them a proper goodbye before heading out himself. He went into the room where they were and sat down on the bed, smiling as he watched Blaze give him a bottle, "It's almost time for me to go, Blaze. I just thought I'd check in with you and Lance before I left. How are things going?"

Blaze answered, "They're fine. Lance seems to perceive that something is wrong too. He wouldn't stop crying the whole time you were gone. He's calmed down now, but...I think he'll be worse when you're fighting Eggman and Nega."

Sonic smiled, "Maybe you should tell him I'll be okay." He leaned over and kissed her forehead, patting Lance on the forehead, then gently rubbing his temples and tummy, "Because I will. I promise I'll come back alive, but I can't promise anything besides that. Is that good enough?"

Blaze nodded, "Yes, it is." She looked down at Lance and muttered, "Daddy's gonna be back, baby. Don't worry." She kissed his cheek and rocked him back and forth to keep him calm. She then stood up, with him in her arms and leaned over to kiss Sonic on the cheek, careful not to squish Lance between them. She told him, "I love you, Sonic."

Sonic nodded, "I love you too, Blaze." He hugged her and Lance at the same time, wanting to get the feelings in his heart across, "Wish me luck."

Blaze giggled and kissed him on the lips, then broke the kiss to breathe, "Of course. Good luck defeating Eggman and Nega."

Sonic told her, "And good luck with our son. Oh...and would you mind checking in with Amy and whoever Shadow has babysitting his son every few hours?"

Blaze replied, "No, I wouldn't mind at all. I'll do it. Goodness knows, Shadow and Knuckles don't need to be distracted about their children while we're trying to fight."

Sonic smiled and kissed her cheek, "Thanks, hon. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

Blaze smiled back and nodded, "Right. Later." She hugged him again, with a little more force this time, as if afraid something might happen. However, she was careful not to squish their son.

Sonic noticed the amount of force and let out a soft grunt, concerned about the amount of force she hugged him with. He said, "Whoa! Easy...everything all right?"

Blaze told him, "Yeah...just worried about you. I'm sorry if that hurt."

Sonic smirked, "Don't worry, I'm fine. But I'll definitely do my best to come back in one piece now." He kissed her passionately on the kiss, holding the kiss for as long as he could before the need to breathe forced him to let up. He told Blaze, "I guess...this is goodbye for now." He was tearing up a bit, although he was doing his best to keep up a strong front.

Blaze sniffled, doing what she could to stay strong for their son. Her eyes filled up with tears at the sight of Sonic so heartbroken at being separated from her, "It's not goodbye. It's...it's just see you later. You're coming back, so don't say goodbye." She held onto Sonic for as long as she could before Lance's crying forced her to let go so she could comfort him, "I love you."

Sonic nodded, "I love you too." Hearing Lance's crying, he gave a small smile to the baby boy, "Both of you." He rubbed the baby's cheek gently before running off, leaving only a soft wind behind him.

When he arrived at the altar of the Master Emerald, Knuckles, Shadow and Tails were already there, appearing to have been waiting for him. He smirked, "Heh...sorry to keep you guys waiting. I had to...say goodbye."

Knuckles nodded, "We understand. Don't worry about it, Sonic. At least you got here. Are we ready?"

Shadow added, "Let's just get there and put a stop to those two now, before they cause all sorts of destruction."

Tails answered, "Yeah! We're gonna go and stop that robot!"

Marine spoke up too, saying, "Ya! We show those two not to take advantage of Blaze!"

Sonic nodded, "I'm ready too, Knux. Let's show those guys that no one messes around with us!"

Knuckles got the Master Emerald out and returned it to its normal size, setting it on the altar. He began saying his chant, "The Seven Chaos Emeralds are the servers. Our hearts intensify their power. Master Emerald! We need your help now! Our friend Blaze's dimension, is at risk, and we need to help her protect it! Please...send us there now!"

The Master Emerald glowed brightly in response and shot a wide energy beam around them, forming a bubble-like shield so that they wouldn't be harmed while crossing the dimensional barrier.

Sonic mumbled, "Don't worry, Blaze. I'll make sure your people stay safe." He then lost consciousness as they were transported across the dimensions by the Master Emerald, as did the others. It would certainly be interesting fighting both of them, and hopefully, it would be a decisive fight, one that would keep him out of commission for a long time.


	17. Chapter 17

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 17

The Dimensional Battle of Epic Proportions

A few hours later, Sonic and company woke up at the altar of the Sol Emeralds, having made it to Blaze's dimension unscathed. However, they all noticed one problem, right away. The temple area was full of robots and the altar was crawling with them as well. Shadow spoke directly to Sonic and said, "Sonic, you should conserve your energy until we get to the final battle. You'll need it to face the robot that the Doctor and his friend constructed. The rest of us will handle the smaller minions."  
>Sonic glared, not liking being left out of a fight...but he knew Shadow was right. If he fought too much before they even reached Eggman and Nega, he wouldn't have the energy to face the robot they built together. He sighed and nodded, "Fine, but I'm gonna jump in if things get too tough. Okay?"<p>

Knuckles nodded, "Fine by us. Who wants to take on this first round of enemies?"

Marine stepped forward and told him, "I'll do it! I want a chance to prove myself!"

Tails ran over to Marine, "Wait...are you serious? But...you can't even fight that well, Marine! Please, let me handle it instead!" He couldn't take it if something happened to her. Even though he hadn't admitted it out loud yet, the feelings he had for Marine were strong in his heart. He would've felt bad if he hadn't tried to talk her out of it.

Shadow spoke up and said, "If I'm there to help too, she'll be better protected. Count me in."

Knuckles nodded, "I'll help you two take these down. It shouldn't be too hard. Sonic and everyone else, stay back. We don't want to accidentally hurt you too."

Sonic nodded and pushed Tails back, then took some steps back himself. Normally, he'd be right in the middle of the action, but he was choosing to listen to his friends for a change and conserve his energy for the robot. He watched as Shadow, Knuckles, and Marine fought, twitching lightly.

Shadow Chaos Controlled, kicking the robots and hitting them from the air. He looked to Marine, who was firing off green energy at the robots as well. The fight would be a cinch as long as they kept the advantage.

Knuckles was punching the ground, creating a small quake and knocking the robots he was facing over. He looked to the others. They both appeared to be holding their own for now. The fight appeared to be almost over, but it was taking a long must have known they were coming.

Marine soon finished her portion of the fight and went over to Knuckles to help him, "Yar a bit slow there, Knuckles. Want some help?" She fired off a green energy from her hands, destroying a good number of robots.

Knuckles looked a little miffed but continued to fight, destroying the remainder of the robots that he had been dealing with. He looked to Shadow, who by this time had destroyed the robot pawns. He said, "Well, I guess we should get on our way to the Water Palace."

Sonic nodded and told them, "I'll lead the way." He ran ahead, followed quickly by Shadow and Tails. As they were about a quarter of the way there, more robots came and the blue blur groaned, annoyed that their access to the palace was being blocked. He turned to Tails and said, "Feel up to giving it a go, little bro?"

Tails blinked, then nodded, "Sure. I thought you'd never ask." He leapt into the fray and looked at Sonic, "A little back-up would be nice."

Knuckles spoke up and told him, "I'll help you, Tails. Sonic needs to save his energy for the robot." He leapt into the fight as well, and looked to Marine. She had done well in the previous battle, much to his surprise, and would probably be ample support. Shadow had already been in one fight, and although he was okay, the ending fight would probably require him to take off his power rings. He'd rather Shadow be able to make the decision with his energy relatively full so that he would be thinking clearly.

Marine nodded and jumped into the fight with Knuckles and Tails, taking out some of the robot pawns with her special energy attack. She looked to Knuckles and Tails, making sure they were both okay. She was willing to take over if either one of them were hurt, especially Tails. Lately, she'd been feeling...a little different around him than she normally would, but was too embarrassed to say anything.

Knuckles, Tails and Marine fought the robots for a good half-hour, then the pawns were defeated. It was another quick skirmish, but the next 'robot pawn' fight would probably be the hardest one. Probably not as hard as the final battle, but it would still be rough. Knuckles wasn't sure if Marine and Tails should fight in it, but he wasn't one to deny someone a good fight if they wanted to fight bad enough, so he stayed quiet once the robot pawns were gone.

Sonic asked, "Is everyone okay?" The fights had been tough,but his friends were hanging on for the final battle and appeared to be all right so far. He just hoped they could hold out until the final battle was over. He was counting on them.

Marine nodded, "We're fine, Sonic. We should keep moving." She was a little anxious about getting to the palace with all the robots hanging around, but with everyone else around, she was safe for now.

As the group made their way further on to the palace, Sonic's mind wandered to Blaze and Lance. He hoped that Blaze was content, and that Lance was keeping her busy enough that she didn't have time to worry over his safety. He missed her, and being separated hurt like a thousand spears being driven through his heart...but he knew she was safe, and that was all that really mattered.

Tails noticed that Sonic seemed a little distracted and told him, "Sonic, are you okay? You look...distracted."

Sonic replied, "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about Blaze and my little boy, that's all."

Knuckles and Shadow both smiled at him, knowing exactly where he was coming from. Well, when it came to thinking about family anyways. Neither of them had a woman now, but they both had kids that they would give their lives up for in a heartbeat.

Marine smiled, "It's no wonder. They're yer famlee, Sonic. Let's keep going now. We're about halfway there." As she continued forward, she didn't notice the robot sniper positioned behind an archway and getting ready to shoot her.

However, Tails seemed to be sensing that something was off and turned his head a bit, glaring, "Hold on guys, we're not alone here." He looked around, getting really anxious.

The robot sniper fired off a shot, but Tails noticed and jumped in the way, protecting Marine from the laser fire. He cried out in pain and crumpled to the floor, clutching his shoulder.

Marine reacted immediately, destroying the sniper with her green energy and rushing over to Tails. She lightly picked up his torso, and asked him, tears brimming her eyes, "Tails...are you all right? I'm sorry. I should've noticed he was there."

Tails smiled at her, blushing at the way she was holding him, "It's all right. It's not your fault. You can't have known he would use a sniper."

Sonic came over to them, a frown of worry on his face, and said, "Tails...maybe you should sit this one out. It's not a good idea to fight with an injury."

Tails smirked, "As if you haven't? Don't worry, I'll be all right." He flinched and stood up, looking ahead. He noticed the number of robots and sighed, "Let's do this, Marine. Knuckles."

Knuckles smirked and told Tails, "...If you're up to it, all right. But if things get too rough, I'm pushing you out of the fight and bringing Sonic in. I don't think he would have you die on his account."

Tails replied, "You're probably right." He rose to his feet and ignored the pain of his injury, getting back into the thick of the fighting. He kicked and punched the strongest bunch of all the robot pawns they had faced so far, giving this fight not quite everything he had, but pretty close to it.

Marine fought alongside him, as did Knuckles, who relentlessly beat on the robots and used his drill move. Hopefully, the fight would end soon and they would get to the palace where the Eggmans were waiting.

After a fight that seemed to last ages, the last of the robots fell to Marine and Tails. They smiled at each other and hugged, which caused Tails to flinch because of his injured shoulder. Marine apologized profusely, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Tails! I almost forgot you were injured. Do you think...you'll be okay to fight the two Eggmans?"

Tails frowned in determination, "I'm fighting them, even if it's the last thing I ever do. I won't let Blaze down." He turned to Sonic and Knuckles, "I guess we should get going then."

Sonic nodded, "Tails...why don't you sit this last fight out? You've more than earned it."

Tails shook his head, "I'm going. You'll have to tie me up to stop me."

Shadow smirked, "Don't tempt me, Tails."

Marine glared at Shadow, "Don't you lay a hand on Tails!" She whacked him a good one on the nose, which resulted in him cursing under his breath and glaring darkly back at her. The ebony hedgehog added, "And you keep your hands to yourself, Marine. Or they'll be one of the many body parts that you will be missing."

Tails sighed and said, "Don't start, you two. We have to get to the palace. Let's get going." He started to run, but clumsily nearly fell over, his injury slowing his reflexes down just a bit.

Sonic ran over and caught his friend by placing one arm behind and one arm in front of Tails. It was a little worrisome that he was being so clumsy. Ordinarily, he would have great reflexes. His injury was probably affecting him more than he realized. He asked, "Tails, are you sure you want to-?"

Tails cut him off, "Yes, I'm sure! We're about halfway there anyways."

Knuckles and Marine both blinked, shocked that Tails was speaking up before Sonic was finished talking.

As the party reached the entrance to the palace, nearby stood Rouge and Silver, who looked like they had been arguing about something.

Sonic walked up to them and said, "Whoa, calm down you two! Silver, why are you here? And Rouge...how on earth did you get to this dimension?"  
>Silver replied, "...I can't tell you that. Let's just say this battle influences my future directly and leave it at that."<p>

Rouge answered him, "I jumped your warp without realizing it. I had a fake emerald that I recovered from one of the Metarex wreckages and it reacted to the Chaos Emeralds and let me go with you guys. I'm not exactly sure how it worked." She glared at Silver, "He said that you guys were dead. I knew it couldn't be true."

Sonic smirked at Silver and said, "Hey, come on, Silver! Give us a little more credit than that!"

Silver sighed and shrugged, "I hadn't seen you guys in a while, so...I wasn't sure if something would've happened to you by now or not." He smirked back and gave Sonic a small thumbs-up gesture. He then said, "This battle directly correlates to my future, so please, let's do our best not to lose. Okay?"

Shadow told Silver, "We will not lose. The Doctor and his alternate from Blaze's dimension can throw everything they want at us, and we will still not surrender." He looked to Sonic and asked, "Are you ready for this?"

Sonic nodded, "I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Let's go and take on the Eggmans." He looked to Tails, "And you're sure you want to go through with this, even though you've been injured already?"

Tails sighed and answered him, "For the last time, yes! I'm not going to let some stupid wound stop me from helping out Blaze."

Sonic smiled at his best friend and patted his good shoulder, "Just don't get shot again, okay? I...could barely tolerate seeing you get hurt before, and I'd rather not see it again."

Marine told Sonic, "We can't make any promises to him, Sonic. We don't know what's gonna happen in the coming fight." She then turned to Tails, "Tails...in case something should happen..." She leaned over a little bit and kissed him on the lips, wanting him to at least know how she felt about him. Even if they both died in the fight, at least he would know the truth.

Tails blushed and replied, "Marine...I...I...I love you too." He hugged her gently, a little frightened and tears in his eyes. He was really scared about the coming battle, but what mattered to him most was Marine and his friends. Even if something happened to him, he would at least have the memory of Sonic's and Knuckles' brotherly love and the raccoon's romantic love for him to take with him when he joined his parents.

A short while later, the party arrived inside the Water Palace, Sonic looking around anxiously for Eggman and Nega. He got the bad feeling that they were somewhere nearby, closer than he would like. Moments later, wires began to come out of a small crack in the ground and a few of them wrapped around their legs. Sonic and the others managed to get free easily, but Tails was having trouble. He fell over and was being dragged along the ground like a rag doll. He screamed and struggled, reaching for Sonic, "Sonic, help me! Please!"

Sonic growled and leapt at the distressed kitsune, grabbing his hands and trying to pull him away from whatever had tried to snag them. However, nothing was happening. He was merely being dragged along with Tails.

Tails teared up and told Sonic, "Let go, Sonic! I don't want you to get hurt too!"

Sonic shook his head, "No! I won't let you get hurt, Tails! It's happened way too much!" He was holding in tears himself, and anyone who knew him could tell that.

Knuckles leapt at the two and grabbed Sonic, forcing the blue blur's forward motion to stop. However, Tails was still being pulled and Sonic was beginning to feel his arms being pulled nearly beyond his limit. He shook his head and shouted, "No! Let go of Tails! Eggman and Nega, where are you two?"

Chuckling laughter was heard from below the ground and a moment later, Eggman and Nega broke through the floor a few feet from where Tails was being pulled under. Eggman asked, "What's the matter, Sonic? Afraid of losing your friends to me?" He pressed a button and the force pulling on Tails increased, causing Sonic to yell out in pain, as he felt like his arms were on fire and were about to be pulled out of his sockets.

Tails clenched his teeth, biting back tears, and told Sonic, "Let go, Sonic! I know you don't want me to get hurt, but I don't want you to get hurt either! Just let go. Trust me!"

Sonic gulped, but nodded and replied, "Okay, little bro, I'll let go. But don't you worry. I'll free you from whatever snag Eggman set up." He released Tails and panted, rubbing his arms lightly, as the pain nagged at him a bit still.

Shadow walked over and asked, "Doctor, what have you planned now? Why did you force them apart?"

Nega spoke up and said, "Oh, you'll find out soon enough, Shadow the Hedgehog. In fact, you might even join him." He pressed a few buttons and a huge robot rose from the spot where Tails had been pulled in. It looked like an enlarged version of Gemerl, with a laser gun, a shield and Tails in its belly chained to it and serving as a power source.

Sonic gasped, "No...how...why? Why did you do this to Tails? He never deserved-"

Eggman cut him off, "He did deserve it. All those times he came up with plans that ruined my own. Now then, let's see what happens if I do THIS." He pushed on a lever in his Eggmobile, which caused it to fly over to the robot. He then pressed a button so they could securely dock on the robot's head. A moment later, he pushed up on another lever and it caused Tails to scream from within the robot.

Knuckles growled, "What the hell did you just do to Tails?"

Nega answered him, "He drew out his energy to start up the robot. Gemerel Mark 2 will be unleashed upon you within a matter of minutes, so I suggest you say goodbye to your precious families."

Shadow looked confused, "How do you know about our families?"

Nega replied, "Because of Blaze's connection to the Sol Emeralds, of course. She was thinking of all of you when she overheard the two of us talking. It may have only been passing thoughts of you, but the Emeralds picked up on them just the same. So-"

Sonic thought of Blaze and Lance at that moment and glared, cutting him off, "If you think you're gonna come near our families, try again! We will die to protect those we love if we have to!"

Marine asked, "But Sonic, won't they get upset if we-?"

Sonic turned to Marine, smirking lightly, "Not to worry, we'll all come back from this alive..." He looked up at the robot, seeing beyond its shell and to Tails, who was still in pain, "even if some of us barely make it." He lunged at the robot, but was soon knocked back by its arms, "Tails, stop!"

Tails explained, "I'm not doing it! I don't have any control over what this thing does! It has to be Eggman and...aaah!" He screamed loudly as the robot drew energy to fire off its laser.

Marine turned to Sonic, her ears flattened on her head in response to Tails' scream, "Sonic, we have to get Tails out of there."

In the Eggmobile, Eggman was pressing buttons and levers, having complete control over the robot. He was having it attack Sonic relentlessly, but the blue hedgeghog was dodging every punch and kick so far.

Shadow growled, "We have to stop them."

Knuckles nodded in agreement, "Yeah, let's end this now."

Rouge shouted, "For Tails!"  
>Marine nodded in agreement and she, Rouge, and Sonic began to attack around the pod that contained Tails. They would not see him harmed no matter what.<p>

However, their attacks were ineffective and they only ended up getting Sonic nearly squeezed to death as the robot squeezed him by the middle.

Shadow sighed and jumped in, using Chaos Spear to cut off the robot's arm. He told Sonic, "Be more careful, faker. I don't think Tails would-"

Tails cut him off and said, "Shadow, shut up! Sonic...please, fight this robot with everything you've got! I know you're worried about me, but if you don't, it could find a way back to our dimension and put your _family _in danger! Don't worry...I'll be okay. Just give this battle everything you have or I won't be able to forgive you!"

Sonic frowned, "But...Tails, I..."

Knuckles spoke up and said, "Sonic, you heard him. Give it everything you've got. Use the Chaos Emeralds and bring out every ounce of power in you."

Sonic thought of Blaze and Lance for a moment, then the Chaos Emeralds glowed and he spaced for a second, being shown what would become of them if he didn't give this all the power he could muster. He growled as the image faded and said, "No...that won't happen! I won't let it!" He looked at Tails and nodded, "I'll give it everything. Just know...I'm sorry."

A tear formed in Tails' eye and he shook his head, "Don't apologize. Just fight."

Sonic nodded and closed his eyes. The Chaos Emeralds glowed and spun around him, using their power to turn him into Super Sonic. He then turned to Shadow and said, "I could use your help to take that thing down. Are you up to it?"

Shadow smirked and nodded, "I'm always up for a fight. You didn't even need to ask." He took off his power rings, and the two hedgehogs turned to face Eggman and Nega.

Eggman was shaking a little inside the robot. He had seen their true powers combined once before. It had been enough to wipe out the Metarex from existence, with some assistance from Cosmo, of course. But...would Sonic really risk wiping out Tails, just to defeat him? Surely not...

Sonic smirked and added, "What's the matter, Egghead? You've seen me like this before. And Tails said it was okay to give this fight my all, so that's what I'm going to do!" He flew straight through the area next to the robot's core, hoping to Chaos that Tails could hang on and live through the attack. However, his attack barely damaged the robot at all. He then kicked and punched the rest of the robot, being merciless because of Tails' encouragement. He turned to Shadow, who was now dealing with Eggman and Nega. He smirked, "I'll leave them to you, Shadow. I've gotta finish up here."

Shadow nodded, "You do that. I'll take care of these two."

Sonic nodded and continued fighting robots, relentless in his attacks because of what had been done to his little brother. Because he was so wrapped up in fighting, he didn't notice Nega pull out a remote control and press a button for another large robot. Although it wasn't anywhere near the extent of Gemerel Mark 2's size, it was still quite impressive.

Knuckles told them, "Looks like we'll have to step up our game a little! Ugh!" He struggled as the robot picked him up. Wait...did this robot need powered the same way Gemerel Mark 2 did? He didn't even think about that. Hearing his ribs getting crushed, the echidna began to gasp for air, but continued to struggle to get free.

His friends jumped in, relentlessly attacking the robot until it let go and he dropped to the floor.

Sonic sighed and said, "Knuckles...why don't you sit the rest of this one out? I know you wanna help Tails, but you won't be any good with broken bones. Chaos Energy can only heal so much."

Knuckles sighed, "I don't care what you say, Sonic. I'm finishing this fight, even if it means I go out in a casket!"

Sonic slammed Knuckles into the wall, "Listen, Knucklehead! You've got two kids to live for! If you die, what will happen to them? Nothing good, that's for sure. Now, give this fight your all still if you're up to it, but don't kill yourself if you're not." He used a little of the Chaos Energy in his body to heal Knuckles as much as he could, then went back to fighting robots.

He got knocked around quite a bit, and he could feel his strength beginning to wane, but as it happened, he heard Blaze talking to him in his mind, using the Sol Emeralds, "Sonic, you can do this. I know your strength is waning, but you cannot falter now. If you do not save my dimension, I fear Nega will cross over and join Eggman. So please...if you don't do this for me, do it for our son's future."

Sonic nodded and his strength began to return, Blaze's love for him motivating him to continue. Although his body was basically broken, the Chaos Energy flowing through him served as an adequate painkiller for the moment. He used energy attack after energy attack on the robot, damaging it more. He then turned to Nega, who was now 'groveling' (though he refused to believe that was what the man was really doing) at Shadow's feet. He said, "So, Nega, are you gonna come quietly or do I have to get rough?"  
>Nega smirked, "Heh, if you think I'm just gonna surrender, you've got another thing coming, Sonic." He pressed a button on the remote in his hands and Gemerel Mark 2 rose again, repairing itself by taking more of Tails' two-tailed fox was now barely alive inside of the robot as it went after Sonic and beat him relentlessly until he was out of super form.<p>

Shadow growled and leapt into the fight, giving it everything he had. He defeated Gemerel again and knocked Tails free of being the power source once and for all. He knocked Nega out, panting and screaming in agony as his body tried to tear itself apart.

Sonic grabbed Shadow's power rings and placed them back on his wrists. He smiled and nodded, "Good work, Shadow. Shall we send Nega packing?"

Shadow smirked, "Sounds like a plan to me."

He and Sonic both charged Nega and kicked him hard in the legs, sending him flying off into the sky. Although, they made sure he didn't end up in their dimension.

Sonic began to feel the effects of the battle and nearly collapsed, going out of super form and falling to his knees. Shadow rushed to his side, as did the others. He asked weakly, "Where...where's Tails?" He noticed the rubble pile of what had been Gemerl Mark 2 and gasped. He ran over and dug through the debris, "Tails?"

All was quiet for a moment, and Sonic was worried that Tails hadn't made it. He began to shed tears for his little brother, sad that he probably didn't make it.

Marine, refusing to believe Tails was dead, dug through every inch of rubble. She found Tails and waved Sonic over, "He's here! He's alive! But only just..."

Getting a hopeful look, the blue blur ran over and hugged the twin-tailed fox and muttered, "You had us worried, little bro."

Tails replied quietly and weakly, "I'm sorry..."

Sonic shook his head, "If anyone should apologize, Tails, it's me for letting this happen. Just promise me you'll hang on so we can get you home...I couldn't live with myself if you didn't survive the trip." The effects of battle started settling more heavily on him and he nearly fell on top of Tails, but Shadow stuck his arm out and caught Sonic.

Shadow said, "Sonic, you and Tails both need medical attention." He picked up the blue blur and placed him on his back, being careful of the quills. "I'll teleport us all back."

Knuckles asked, "Are you sure you're up to it, Shadow? You're quite drained yourself from the fight."

Shadow replied, "Yes, I'm up to it. Don't ask me anymore questions. Everyone just place a hand on me so we can go."

Knuckles nodded and placed a hand on Shadow's elbow, since his hands were full of Sonic.

Marine helped Tails grip Shadow's ankle and kept her hands on him.

Rouge placed a hand on Shadow's hip.

Shadow blushed lightly and told her, "You just can't leave well enough alone. We're through, so why put your hand there?"

Rouge replied, "I have my reasons, handsome." She smirked and kept standing there.

Silver said, panting, "It was...a good fight. I think my future is probably looking up. What do you think?"

Sonic smirked and nodded, "I'd say it probably is. So you headed home now?"

Silver responded, "Yeah, but it was good to see you guys again. See ya." He opened a vortex and went back to his time, seeming a whole lot cheerier, which was a good sign.

Shadow nodded, "Since we're all here, let's get going." He teleported back to their dimension.

While they were on the way back, Sonic heard Blaze speaking softly to him, as if to help Shadow keep him alive. She must've been speaking to him through the Sol Emeralds again. She said, "Sonic...thank you so much for risking everything. You don't know what it means to me. Just promise me you'll live. I don't think I could take losing you again..."

Sonic responded quietly, "I'll never stop running, Blaze. So don't worry..." He lost consciousness.

When they got back to their dimension, Shadow and Marine raced Sonic and Tails to the hospital, admitting them and telling them the severity of Tails' condition. Now, it was just a matter of waiting.

A few hours later, Blaze showed up at the hospital with Lance asleep in her arms. She asked, "Any news on Sonic or Tails yet?"

Shadow, who was the only one conscious at the moment, answered her, "No, not a word yet. I'm sure they'll pull through this, Blaze. Despite what I think of him, I trust in Sonic's love for you and your son." He lightly patted Lance's head, missing his own infant son.

Lance woke up, giggled and nibbled lightly on Shadow's finger.

Shadow pulled his hand away and grumbled, "He's got some serious teeth on him."

Blaze laughed, "Well, he is a hedgecat and a baby, so of course they'll be a little sharp. How is your son?"

Shadow answered, "I was about to call my home to check on him, actually. Hang on." He dialed his apartment and waited for the sitter to answer.

The babysitter, who was a re-incarnation of Maria as a fox, answered the phone and said, "Hello?"

Shadow responded, "Hello, Maria. How is Sly doing?"

The sitter smiled and answered, "He's fine. He's sleeping away, but he did cry a lot today. He probably just missed you."

Shadow nodded, "I'll be home in a few hours. I want to hear something about Sonic and Tails before I leave the hospital."

Blaze looked shocked, "Maria? You mean..your friend? But, I thought she had died."

Shadow responded, "I was going up to the ARK to get a few things for Sly, mainly an extra set of power rings for when he comes into his powers, when I came across a capsule. Inside was a young fox who had Maria's way of snoring...I took a chance and woke her up. I asked her if she remembered anything and she said no. I subtly reminded her of our time on the ARK and she still didn't remember. It hurt, but...it was enough to have her back. She has the same kind and gentle spirit of Maria, and that's enough for me."

Blaze smiled, "After everything you've been through, you deserve someone like that, Shadow."

Shadow shrugged, "I guess."

A moment later, a nurse and a doctor came to the waiting room, to tell Shadow and the others some news about Sonic and Tails.

Shadow shook Marine and Knuckles awake, thinking they would want to hear about it.

Marine grumbled, but nodded and looked at the nurse and doctor, waiting.

Knuckles looked at the nurse and doctor and demanded, "Well are you gonna tell us or not?"

The doctor spoke up first, "Your friend Tails was in pretty serious condition when you admitted him. He's barely breathing and his heartbeat is irregular, so we've put him in intensive care. Sonic should be fine. He had a broken collarbone, a broken ankle, a few bruised ribs, and sprained his thigh, but he should recover with time. Tails will need to stay for longer than Sonic, but they should both recover."

Blaze asked, "Doctor, can I go and be with Sonic now? Please? I'm his wife." She showed him her hand, to show off the ring just to prove it, "And this is his son, Lance."

The doctor nodded, "Of course, we always let family in. Just don't expect him to be very responsive. We had to give him a pretty large amount of morphine just to set the bones, so he might still be a bit incoherent."

Blaze told the doctor, "That's fine. Just let me see him..."

The doctor turned to the nurse as his pager went off, "You take her to his room. I've got other patients."

The nurse nodded, "Come with me, Blaze." She took Blaze to Sonic's room.

When Blaze got in the room, the nurse left to help the doctor again.

Blaze placed her hand gently on Sonic's and whispered to him, "Hey, Sonic. I knew you'd pull through."

Sonic felt Blaze's hand and smiled, "Yeah, I'm too stubborn to die."

Blaze laughed lightly and nodded, tears in her eyes, "I guess so."

Sonic reached up with his good hand and wiped her tears. He told her, "Pretty girls like you shouldn't cry. It just looks so tragic when you do." He coughed a little, his bruised ribs making him a little uncomfortable. They didn't hurt that bad, they were just a minor discomfort.

Blaze gulped and nodded, trying to stay strong for him and for Lance. She told him, "Lance cried a lot while you were gone. I think he must have figured out somehow that you were putting your life on the line for us and didn't like it."

Sonic replied, "He'd better get used to it, because as long as Eggman's around, someone has to be there to stop him."

Blaze sighed, "Yeah, I guess so. Well, Sonic, I need to get home and put Lance to bed. Are you okay here by yourself?" She gently stroked his jaw, just glad to be able to touch him again.

Sonic smiled and put his hand on hers, nodding, "Yeah, I'm okay to sleep here now that I know you're all right."

Blaze nodded, her eyes tearing up as she began to walk out of the room, "Good night, Sonic. I'll miss you at home tonight."

Sonic nodded, his eyes welling up with tears too, "Good night, Blaze. I'll miss you too, and dream about you."

Blaze blushed and nodded, "I'll probably dream about you too." She hadn't told him anything about it yet, but she had a girl's equivalent of a wet dream about him. In it, Lance was at daycare, while she and Sonic were home alone. Then...she blushed as she thought of the later details and left the room.

Sonic yawned and went to sleep after she left, a little confused about why she had been blushing when she left, but he could ask her about that later.

Marine asked the doctor, "Can I please go to see Tails? I know he's in ICU, but please! I..."

Blaze sighed and walked over to the two, "Doctor, it won't harm Tails if Marine just goes to see him for a little bit. Can't you make an exception just this once?"

The doctor sighed and glanced at his watch, "Fine, but only for 15 minutes. After that, I have to say no more visitors. The ICU visiting hours are shorter than those of the rest of the hospital. Remember that when you come to see him again." He walked off.

Marine smiled and hugged Blaze, and lightly planted a kiss on the top of Lance's head, "Thanks, Blaze. I'm gonna go see Tails. Oh...how's Sonic?"

Blaze answered, "He fell asleep as I was leaving. Other than the broken limbs, he seemed to be in a relatively good mood."

Marine nodded, "That's good. Well, see you later." She walked off to go see Tails.

Blaze went home and put Lance to bed.


	18. Chapter 18

A/n: This chapter will probably contain a time-skip or two, so that Lance can be at least a toddler before he has a sister. I think the Sonaze children are all gonna be in it, but only one or two of the other Knuckles, Shadow and Rouge kids will be in it. I think this story will have 30 chapters in all. I'll give you an outline/timeline next chapter that will help you see where this story is going. That way, you can know what to look for and you won't be caught off guard. Because of the timeline thing, next chapter may be a little shorter than the others.

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 18: Recovery, Pity, and Lance's Sibling

The next morning, Blaze woke up early to a crying Lance. She went over to the crib and picked him up and hugged him, kissing him on the cheek, "Shh, it's okay, Lance. Mommy's here. Are you hungry?"

Lance made a cooing sound and bumped his head against her breast, telling her with his body language that he was quite hungry.

Blaze giggled and nodded, unfastening her bra and lifting his head so that he could feed on her breast milk, "You know, I might start weaning you off that and start you on a bottle. What do you think of that?"

Lance grinned and giggled, showing that he looked forward to it. He began to suckle on her nipple, cooing lightly as Blaze's warm breast milk began to flow into his mouth. He swallowed and kept feeding. After a little while, he pulled off her breast and tried to talk, saying, "M-m-momma!"

Blaze gasped and nodded, "Yes, I'm your momma! Very good, sweetie! You said your first word!" She teared up slightly, wishing Sonic had been here to hear their son say his first word. She said, "What is it, sweetie?"

Lance said another word in a baby's equivalent of a curious tone, "D-d-dada?"  
>Blaze frowned, "Your daddy's in the hospital. You wanna go see him?"<p>

Lance noticed her frown and made a pouting face. He then nodded. Although he didn't understand words, he did understand harsh and severe tones of voice, and could generally tell when there was an urgent situation, "Y-yeah...go...s-see Dada."

Blaze nodded, "Okay. We'll go see him once your done."

Lance told her, "Full. Wan go see dada."

Blaze smiled, "I'm glad you're full. We'll go and see him then." She fixed her bra and top, picked up Lance and set him on her hip while she gathered up some items to take with her to visit Sonic. She then packed a diaper bag for Lance and left the house.

When she got to the hospital, Sonic already had a few visitors. Hopefully, he wouldn't feel too overwhelmed with a couple more. She entered the room and said, "Hi, Sonic."She bent down and kissed him passionately on the lips.

Sonic kissed back and smiled, "I've thought about you a lot today, Blaze. How's Lance doing?"

Blaze responded, "He's doing really well with growing. He...talked today."

Sonic gasped, "His first words? Oh, Blaze...I'm so sorry I missed it." He looked at Lance and smiled at him out of amazement, "Has he tried to do anything else?"

Blaze shook her head, "Nope. Just talking." She sat down on the side of the bed so that Lance could have access to his father.

Lance smiled and laughed once he was sitting on Sonic's lap, happy to be with his father. He loved his mother too of course, but it looked like Sonic would be his favorite parent. He cooed, then said, "Dada, wuv woo."

Sonic laughed back, then said, "Aww, thanks, Lance. I love you too, little guy." He hugged him and kissed the top of his head.

As he was about to tell Blaze something, a doctor walked in to check on Sonic and smiled, glad to see that being around his family was having positive effects. He told them, "I've got good news, Sonic. All that time you spent sleeping last night and practically up until your wife and kid got here appears to be having a positive effect on your healing. Your bones are mending at an astonishing rate, as are your other injuries. I'd say we can probably release you day after tomorrow. Just...take it easy for a while."

Sonic smiled, "That is good news. Uh...okay, I'll try."

Blaze giggled, tears of joy in her eyes at hearing about Sonic's miraculous recovery, "Don't worry, Sonic. I'll make sure you take it easy." She lightly put a flame at the end of one finger, smirking lightly.

Sonic's eyes went wide and he flinched, "Okay." He looked at Lance, "Guess what, little guy? I get to come home day after tomorrow. What do you think?"

Lance grinned at his father and hugged him. Although he didn't understand particular words, he did pick up on the joy in his mother's and father's voices and laughed a little as well. He said, "Dada home!"

Blaze laughed, "The day after tomorrow, yes." She looked at Sonic, "And just cause you're coming home doesn't mean you're 100 percent healed. I'm still gonna make you take it easy for a few days. But...only for a few days." She blushed, whispering in his ear and telling him, "After you're completely healed, what do you think about having sex?"

Sonic nodded, whispering back, "That sounds good. Let's just use protection this time, okay? I don't wanna wait to get you pregnant again. At least, not until Lance is out of diapers."

Blaze smiled, "That's fine." She kissed his cheek and took Lance, "Well, I'm gonna go apply for a job. It'll give me something to do until you're home."

Sonic replied, "Yeah...a job will help support the kid too. But... I have one already."

Blaze told him, smirking, "The part-time coach's assistant at the high school job that you have isn't giving you much pay. Me getting a second job will add more to our income, Sonic. And...in a couple of years I wanna give Lance a sibling. If we're gonna have two or more kids, we need to have jobs so that we can provide for them."

Sonic nodded, "Yeah...you got a good point, Blaze. So, what are you thinking of doing?"

Blaze responded, "I think I'd like to be a hostess at one of the diners around here. Just don't know which one yet, so I'll apply to them all and whoever responds first is who will get me."

Sonic replied, "All right, Blaze. That sounds good. I'll see you day after tomorrow, hun." He blew her a kiss as she walked out the door.

Blaze reached out as if to catch his blown kiss, then put her hand on her mouth, "Love you, darling."

Sonic smiled, "Love you too, Blaze."

Blaze left the hospital and applied to all the diners in town, then headed home. She was glad she got to visit Sonic. Between raising the baby, Sonic being in the hospital and hopefully getting a job at one of the places she had applied to, she was really stressed. Needing a time-out, she fed Lance and then put him down for a nap. She then went to take a relaxing bath in epsom salt.

When she had gone to see Knuckles once about enrolling in the gym when Lance was still really new, he had recommended doing that at least once a week to keep her stress level manageable. Hopefully it would work. She poured the lavendar scented salt in the tub, then filled the tub with warm water. She got in and sighed as she took a whiff of the air, the warm water relaxing her tense muscles and the scent of the salt making all the stress of the day seem not so bad. Maybe this was how Knuckles stayed so chipper all the time. She closed her eyes halfway and just enjoyed the feel of the warm water on her skin. The water around her started to heat up as her body temperature rose. She was thinking of Sonic and becoming aroused. Trying to calm herself, she took a deep breath, as Sonic had told her too once. She calmed down a bit physically, as the water was returning to its normal temperature, but in her mind's eye, she still saw an image of her and Sonic having sex and blushed, "He needs to come home soon."

-Time Skip #1: Two days later-

Blaze leapt out of bed a couple of days later, excited about having Sonic come home that evening. They would finally get to spend time alone together and as a family! Even if Lance only participated part of the time, at least his father wouldn't miss it when he started walking and actually more intelligibly talking. She took Lance out of his crib carefully and quietly though, bathed him, changed his diaper, and put clean clothes on him in record time. She then put him in the baby carrier and placed it on the stroller. She then walked to the hospital, since the weather was just as sunny as she was feeling.

Once they got to the hospital, Sonic was in a wheelchair at the front desk, asking questions about Tails. Blaze spoke up and said, "Good morning, Sonic."

Sonic glanced back at her, "Oh...morning, Blaze. You're here early."

Blaze nodded, "Yeah...is that a bad thing?"

Sonic shook his head, "Not at all." He frowned a little, "I was just checking on Tails. They don't tell me much since I'm a patient though."

Blaze smiled, "I'll ask." She looked at the nurse at the desk and said, "Excuse me, ma'am. Can you give me an update on how Miles Prower is doing?"

The nurse answered, "Are you family?"

Blaze replied, "Uhh, yeah, I'm his big sister." She then looked at Sonic and whispered, "Should I have said _like _his big sister?"

Sonic shook his head, "They wouldn't have told you anything then." He looked to the nurse, anxious.

The nurse answered, "He's still in critical condition, but they've taken him out of the ICU ward, so...he's on the road to recovery."

Blaze gave a relieved sigh and looked at Sonic. She then asked, "Would it be possible for me to take Sonic to go see him?"  
>The nurse sighed and nodded, "All right."<p>

Blaze smiled, "Thank you ma'am. Where is his room?" She hung the diaper bag on the back of Sonic's wheelchair, on one of the handles.

The nurse told her, "It's a couple doors down the corridor to your right. Room 111."

Sonic smirked, "The room number's all 1s. I like it."

Blaze rolled her eyes, "You would. Thank you, nurse." She wheeled Sonic to Tails' room and stopped him next to the bed once they were in the room. She got a chair and sat down next to the bed also, "How long did you wanna visit, Sonic?"

Sonic told her, "A couple of hours maybe. Why? Did you have somewhere you needed to be?"

Blaze answered, "No, I just wanted to spend some time alone with you before you left, but that's fine. We'll have all evening tonight." She winked.

Sonic smirked and blushed, "Heh...someone's anxious."

Blaze blushed too, "Well, yeah..." She placed a hand gently on his knee, then looked toward Tails, as she noticed that he had moved slightly out of the corner of her eye, "Hmm?"

Tails woke up with a soft groan and noticed Blaze, Sonic, and Lance. He smiled at them and said quietly and weakly, "Hi."

Sonic smiled back and gave him the thumbs up, holding in tears of joy. Of course, Blaze was the only one who really noticed, "Hi, Tails. I'm glad you're getting better. Orange-tinted gray fur was definitely not a good look for you."

Tails smiled, coughing lightly as he tried to laugh, "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

Blaze shook her head, "It's not your fault, Tails. Eggman's the one who nearly killed you. It's not like you willingly went into the robot."

Sonic nodded in agreement, "What she said. That and...I'm just glad you survived. I was so scared that you were gonna die, Tails. That's the only reason I held back the first part of the fight. I didn't want you to get hurt."

Tails sighed, "Sonic, you've apologized already. I told you, it's fine. You have to do what you have to do. And I just hope I can show the same courage you did if you're ever in the situation I was."

Sonic told him, "Actually, I was scared to death that something was gonna happen to you at that point. If not for your encouragement, I don't think I could have gone through with it."

Blaze told the two of them, "It was a team effort, then."

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, it was just all of us working together, like always."

A moment later, there was a knock on the door and Knuckles and Amy walked in the door. Knuckles was carrying Kotton and Amy carried Kolin. Knuckles nodded, "Oh, hi Sonic. I thought you'd be out of here by now. ...How are you feeling Tails?"

Tails coughed slightly, his throat irritated from just the short time of talking to Sonic, as it was still sensitive from having the breathing tube in from being in ICU. He then said, "Better. Thank you, Knuckles."

Sonic told Tails, "Tails, I hate to visit for such a short time, but I really wanna head home. You okay here with Knuckles and Amy?"

Tails nodded, his throat getting too irritated for much more talking.

Sonic responded, "Okay, little bro. I'll see you later then." He got out of the wheelchair, took Blaze's hand, and walked to the front desk. After signing a release form, he was given a copy by the desk nurse and left the hospital with Blaze and Lance following close behind. He was very tempted to run, but he knew Blaze was just waiting in the wings to burn him if he pushed himself too hard too soon.

About four days passed before Blaze was willing to let up on her position as his warden and smirked, "Heh...you know, you seem like your old self again. You want to...uh...?"

Sonic laughed, "What, have sex? Yeah, I've been ready since I came home. I've just been waiting on you to let up on your self-appointed position as my warden while I recovered." He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "I'm feeling fine now though. So shall we?" He kissed her passionately.

Blaze kissed back and nodded her head, nibbling on his bottom lip.

Sonic opened his mouth and moaned softly as she played with his tongue. He then pushed her gently down onto the bed and pushed her tongue out of his mouth with his own tongue and nibbled on her bottom lip, wanting to take control.

Blaze smirked, then opened her mouth and let out a moan as he played with her tongue. She began to grind against him, getting wet from the intimate contact with the blue hedgehog.

Sonic felt her wetness against his thigh and smirked, "Someone's anxious." He began to finger her, just to help loosen her up. He had been in the hospital for a while, and she was probably really tight. Unless she had pleasured herself...he drooled lightly at the thought, but then shook his head to clear it. He needed to focus on the here and now. He got a condom out of one of his dresser drawers and slipped it onto his erect penis. He softly asked Blaze, his voice laden with lust, "Are you ready for me, baby?"

Blaze nodded, a soft moan undertoning her voice, "Y-yeah...I've been waiting so long for this!" She leaned up on her elbows and kissed him passionately on the lips.

Sonic kissed back and thrusted into her, eliciting a loud moan from the lavendar feline. It was fairly obvious she had waited for him and he considered that flattering, "You waited the whole time I was in the hospital? Wow...that had to be difficult." He laughed then said, "Certainly explains why you blushed when you left that one time though." He moaned also and thrusted harder and faster into her.

Blaze moaned and bucked her hips faster, to try and keep up with him. She explained, "I...had a dream about you the night before that one time. ...A sex dream."

Sonic blushed, then smiled, "How flattering. Thanks for sharing that with me." He kissed her passionately and picked up the pace of his thrusts even more, going at not quite, but pretty close to his top speed.

Blaze moaned loudly again and tried to match his speed as best she could. She was getting close to her climax and muttered, "Sonic...I'm so close."

Sonic nodded, "I am too." He went at top speed and thrusted a bit harder too.

Blaze screamed out his name as she climaxed and her juices poured all over the condom.

Sonic climaxed too and moaned her name as he came inside the condom. Right now was not a good time to be pregnant. They'd wait until Lance was out of diapers.

-Time Skip #2: Three Years Later-

Sonic was running laps around the outside of their house, when he noticed his son running right alongside him. He smirked, "Coming into your powers, I see."

Lance smiled and nodded his head, "Uh-huh, Daddy. But that's not all I can do. Lookie!" He stopped running and concentrated for a minute. A moment later, fire appeared on his left hand and he smiled, "What do you think, Daddy? Isn't that great?"

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, that's wonderful! You have your mom's abilities and mine. Seems like your pyrokinesis isn't quite like your mom's though. The fire's a different color. More of a bluish."

Lance told him, "That's probably thanks to you."

Sonic replied, "Yeah, more than likely. Blue fire is usually hotter than yellow-orange fire, and since you're faster than Blaze, it's not unthinkable that your body runs at a higher temp. Oh, I had something I wanted to ask you."

Lance looked at him, "Yeah, Daddy?"

Sonic answered, "How would you feel about being a big brother?"

Lance gasped, "I'd love it, are you kidding me? I've been wanting a little brother or sister since like, forever! Yes!"

Sonic laughed, "Well, that answers that question."

Lance asked him, "Why, is mom pregnant?"

Sonic told him, "Not yet, but we were thinking of trying for another baby soon and I wanted your opinion before we did anything. Just so that you know that we still love you, even if we can't always give you our full attention."

Lance smiled, "I'd never think you didn't love me, Dad. You and Mom have always done what's best by me, and I'd like to think it's because you care." He hugged his father.

Sonic smiled back and hugged him back, "Okay, you made your point."

Lance nodded, "Let's finish our run then."

Sonic nodded and smirked, "Let's see if you really can keep up with me for long." He took off again at top speed.

Lance kept up easily, but left a burning trail behind him. He blushed, "Umm...that won't always happen, will it?"

Sonic told him, "More than likely since you operate at a higher temp. I'm frankly surprised you haven't burned through your clothes or shoes yet."

Blaze spoke up from the doorway, "I took him to Tails a few days ago to get him special clothes and shoes just so that wouldn't happen." She asked Sonic, "So, what does Lance think of having a sibling?"

Sonic smiled, "He's excited about it and looking forward to it." He walked over to her and kissed her passionately on the lips. "Why, you wanna go try now?"

Blaze blushed and nodded, "Yeah."

Sonic nodded, "Okay, let me make one more loop, then I'll meet you in the bedroom, babe." He winked at her and took off again.

Blaze blushed, then went into the bedroom. She took off her clothes, then folded them and lay them in her wardrobe. She lay on the bed with a hand resting on her chin with her elbow on the bed, and the other resting on her side to accent the gentle curve of her body. When Sonic came in, she gave him a sly, seductive stare.

Sonic blushed at the way she was lying naked in the bed and came over to her, feeling beckoned over by the way she was looking at him. He kissed her passionately on the lips and muttered, "Get me going and I'm all yours. You get to be on top this time since I was the last few times."

Blaze nodded and put her mouth on his dick, gently beginning to suck on it. She didn't want him to cum, just to get him aroused.

Sonic moaned softly, then sighed contentedly and leaned back on the pillows of the bed, getting comfortable.

Blaze went a little faster with her mouth, trying to further his arousal and get things moving.

Sonic moaned even more, now greatly aroused. He thrust his dick lightly and said, "Blaze, ride me. Please."

Blaze nodded, removed her mouth, and sat down on his dick, moaning as he penetrated her. She began to ride him hard.

Sonic moaned loudly and thrusted his hips up, trying to get in deeper.

Blaze moaned also and began to ride harder, trying to help him as much as she could. She adjusted herself slightly so that he was right at her pussy and began to ride faster also.

Sonic moaned more and thrust his hips quickly up, getting ever closer to his climax. He told Blaze, "Blaze...I'm close!"

Blaze moaned and rode him a little faster also, telling him, "Same...here."

Sonic climaxed and came inside her. After all, they were _trying_ for a baby now.

Sonic's cum seemed to do the trick, because Blaze reached her climax and orgasmed, screaming out his name. She collapsed on the bed beside him and put an arm around his back, being careful of the quills and panting, "Sonic...you were amazing."

Sonic answered, "You too, Blaze." He kissed her on the cheek and put both arms around her, keeping her safe and warm in his embrace. Hopefully they would get another child out of this. If not, they could always try again.

The next morning, Blaze woke up feeling sick and went to the bathroom to throw up. She groaned and went back to the bedroom and cuddled close to Sonic, "Sonic...why do I feel so sick so suddenly? I was feeling fine yesterday."

Sonic sighed, "I don't know. You could be pregant again. We were trying, you know." He said with a blush.

Blaze nodded, "But we can't be certain yet. We just had sex last night. If it's been a few days and I'm still not feeling like myself, we can go see about that. Okay?" She hugged him.

Sonic replied, "Sure, whatever you want, Blaze. It's your call." He returned the embrace, just wanting to hold her close for a few moments before they went to wake up their son.

Blaze sighed and said, "We should go get Lance up so he can get to daycare on time." She heard the phone ring and said, "I'll get it. Maybe it's one of the diners I applied to." She went over and answered the phone, "Hello?"

The head manager at Teladega's Diner was on the phone and said, "Hello, I'm Tyler Grishnev, the head manager at Teladega's Diner. Is this Blaze the Cat?"

Blaze answered him, "Yes, sir."

The manager said, "I've been looking over your application and you seem like you'd be perfect for the hostess opening I have. When can you come in for an interview?"

Blaze told him, "I can come in this afternoon. I don't have any plans. Thank you so much for the opportunity!"

The manager replied, "You're welcome and...how does 2:30 sound? We're usually pretty dead around then."

Blaze nodded, "It sounds good. I'll see you this afternoon. Thanks again, sir." She hung up the phone and jumped for joy, "Yes!"

Sonic laughed at her joy and said, "So I take it that was one of the diners?"

Blaze told him, "Uh-huh. Teladega's. They want me to come in for an interview. I'm so excited that I might get this!"

Sonic told her, "Should you be starting something like that though if you're pregnant?"

Blaze answered, "It's not like I'll be lifting anything. And even if they ask me to, I'll tell them of that possibility and they shouldn't ask too much of me."

Sonic replied, "All right, well, you'd better get ready then." He kissed her cheek, "I hope you get this, Blaze. If it's what really makes you happy, then I won't stand in the way."

Blaze smiled and kissed him on his other cheek, "I do want this. You know how much I enjoy being in the company of others. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've gotta shower and get dressed so I can take Lance to daycare while I'm at my interview. You have a job too now, you know."

Sonic sighed, "I know." He then asked, "Hey, have you heard from Knuckles or Shadow?"

Blaze told him, "No, I haven't. I'm sure they've both got their hands full though with raising kids basically on their own. Though, it wouldn't surprise me if Knuckles and Amy hooked up. She was going to babysit a lot."

Sonic smirked, "Yeah, wouldn't surprise me either. Knuckles may not be a virgin like Amy, but he needs someone to help him move on from Rouge."

Blaze nodded, "Shadow has someone now too. A reincarnated Maria. Poor Rouge is single again and working, but I'm sure she'll find someone else too."

Sonic sighed, "Maybe. That or she'll try and get pity sex from Knuckles or Shadow."

Blaze replied, "The pity sex thing I can see with Knuckles, but Shadow? I don't know...I don't think he's even forgiven her for the first time yet. She did knock him off his ass to get what she wanted."

Sonic sighed, "Yeah, that's true. Shadow's notorius for holding grudges too, so I doubt he'd let her near him." He sighed and said, "Well, I guess I'd better let you wake up Lance. You've got an interview and I don't wanna make you late." He kissed her on the cheek, "Try to hurry home though after the interview's over."

Blaze told him, "If they don't try to work me the same day as my interview, I will, darling." She kissed his cheek too, then went to Lance's bedroom and shook the little one awake, "Lance, sweetie, it's morning. You need to get up now."

Lance let out a slight groan and opened his eyes, looking at his mom sleepily, "Mommy, can I just not go to nursery school today?"

Blaze laughed, "Don't be silly, sweetie, you have to go. I have an interview this afternoon and your Daddy has to work. We don't have time to stay here and play with you. I'm sorry." She ruffled his hair and kissed his forehead, "We'll be home tonight though."

Lance nodded, "Okay, mommy." He hugged her tightly and told her, "I gotta gets my regular clothes on. Will you wait outside the room?"

Blaze responded, "Of course." She stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her, waiting on him to come out.

A moment later, Lance came out wearing black shorts and a sleeveless red-and-gold turtleneck shirt that Sonic had bought for him. He said, "Mommy, does this looks okay?"

Blaze nodded, "You look fine, son. You look like a handsome prince." She kissed his cheek and hugged him, "Go on outside. I'll meet you there."

Lance nodded and ran outside, stopping himself at their porch.

Blaze went back to Sonic and hugged him and kissed him, "I'll see you later, Sonic. I love you."

Sonic hugged her back and kissed back, "Love you too, Blaze."

Blaze released Sonic from the hug and went outside with Lance, "You ready to go to nursery school, Lance?"

Lance nodded, "Uh-huh! I'm gonna have so much fun!" He clapped his hands and jumped for joy.

Blaze laughed, "When you woke up this morning, you didn't even want to go. Why the sudden change of heart?"

Lance blushed, "I had forgot about all my friendses."

Blaze nodded, "Oh, okay." She kissed his forehead and told him, "Let's get you to your 'friendses' then."

Lance smirked and said, "Can you keep up with me, mama?"

Blaze shrugged, "I can try and stick close anyway."

Lance nodded, "Otay, mommy." He took off running at his quickest speed, leaving a flame trail behind him.

Blaze sighed and took off too, keeping him in sight while running at her fastest speed.

Once they reached the daycare, Lance stopped outside the door a few seconds before Blaze came up behind him. He smiled, giggling, "What took so long, mommy?"\

Blaze told him, rolling her eyes, "You're funny, you know that?" She ruffled the fur on the top of his head, then turned and knocked on the door.

A moment later, the teacher, who was a somewhat reasonably dressed college dropout, came to the door and answered it, "Oh yes, you must be Blaze the Cat. I was wondering if you were gonna bring your little man by. He's adorable. What's his name?"

Blaze answered, "His name is Lance."

Lance hid behind Blaze's leg, a little shy around strangers.

Blaze laughed, "Lance, it's okay. This lady is gonna look after you for me today. She won't hurt you."

The teacher nodded, "You'll be fine, son. I'll take _good care_ of you." She eyed him with a look of fascination.

Lance hugged Blaze's leg, not liking the way he was being looked at, "Mommy, can't I just come with you or go with Daddy?"

Blaze sighed, "Lance, believe me, I would take you with me if everything didn't hinge on getting this job. I need to look professional, and you will make me look fragile. Just stay here. I'm sure everything will be fine. If something happens, call your Daddy at work. Okay? Now, have a good day." She hugged Lance tight and kissed his cheek with tears in her eyes.

Lance clung onto Blaze, not wanting to let go. He had a bit of a strong grip for a 3-year-old too.

Blaze slowly and gently pushed him off, taking him in her arms, then placing him in the arms of the daycare worker, "I'll be back for you later, sweetie. All right? Don' t be upset." She kissed his cheek, "Everything's going to be fine." She turned and waved to Lance one last time before walking off to head to her interview.

Lance cried loudly, burying his face in the shoulder of the daycare worker. He hoped that the day would go fast and that Blaze would arrive back at the daycare soon.

The daycare worker smirked and took him inside, heading back for the bathroom, "Now then, little cutie, time for your lessons." She took off her clothes.

Lance looked away out of a sense of decency. He asked her, "What you doing? You supposed to be looking after me, not...whatever it is your doing."

The worker put her hand under his chin and turned his head back around so he was looking at her, "It's called sex, little cutie, and if you don't give me what I want, I'll tell your mama you were a bad boy and you won't get to go home."

Lance shook his head, "That's not true. If I misbehaved, Mama would never leave me here! She'd taky me home and deals with it there, notty leave me here!"

The worker glared and said, "Whatever, just...get in position, okay?"

Lance looked confused, "Huh?"  
>The worker took his hands and put them on her boobs, "Rub them."<p>

Lance took his hands off and shook his head, "No, no! It's wrong to touch a girl there!"

The worker shoved Lance back into the door of the bathroom, "Now listen up, bucko. You get me off, or you won't get to see your friends!"

Lance's eyes teared up, but he nodded, "O-okay...what should I do?"

The worker put his hands back on her breasts and told him, "Just like I was telling you. Rub them."

Lance rubbed her breasts slightly, feeling her nipples harden under his fingers. He let up and said, "Dat's enough! Don't wanna!" He ran out and took out the cell phone Blaze had left with him, calling Sonic at work.

Sonic heard the phone at his desk ringing and told the kids, "Keep giving it your all, guys, I gotta take this." He ran in and grabbed the phone, "Hello?"

On the other end, Lance was in tears and his voice shook, showing just how upset he was, "Daddy! Please come get me from daycare! Teacher's having me do bad things!"

Sonic frowned and nodded, not liking the implication of his words, "I'm on my way, Lance. Just hang in there, okay?"

Lance responded, "Yes, Daddy."

Sonic told him, "Thanks, little guy. I'm on my way." He hung up the phone and went back out onto the track, looking at the other assistant coaches and saying, "I have to go. I have a family emergency. Cover for me?"

The other coaches nodded, "Sure."

Sonic told them thanks and ran quickly to get to Lance's daycare.

When he got there, Lance was lying completely naked on the floor and crying. The teacher was also ill-clad in her bra and underwear and was advancing on his son with a whip.

Sonic glared and ran in between them. He told her, "I can't believe you! You took advantage of Blaze's trust and almost raped our son! I should kill you for trying to do this." He helped up Lance and put his clothes back on him, "Are you okay?"

Lance nodded, then hugged Sonic tight, "Daddy, please don't leave me!"

Sonic hugged him back and told him, "I won't leave you, son. Ever." He glared at the teacher, "And I'm calling the police on you. You took advantage of your position of power over kids and used it to fulfill your own sexual desires. That's not right at all." He went to the phone and called the cops, informed them about what happened and waited, keeping Lance close.

A little while later, the police showed up and evacuated the other kids from the daycare, taking most of them home to the addresses on file with the postal service. The chief of police said, "Ma'am, you're under arrest for child abuse and 9 counts of child neglect. Do you have anything to say?"

The woman shook her head.

The police cuffed her and put her in a squad car.

At this point, Lance began to sob, holding tight to Sonic and never wanting to let go.

Sonic held his son, relieved that he had gotten there fast enough, "Shh, you're okay, Lance. She didn't do anything."  
>Blaze came running up, having had her interview interrupted by the police informing her that there was a disturbance at Lance's daycare. Tears were in her eyes as she regarded Lance, "Lance, I'm so sorry...I just...I didn't-"<p>

Sonic kissed her cheek slightly and said, "Shh. It's not your fault, Blaze. You gave her the benefit of the doubt and she took advantage of that. None of it was your fault. Was it Lance?"

Lance shook his head, despite the fact that he was slightly upset at his mommy for leaving him in the care of the pedophile, "Daddy's right. Not you fault, momma." He reached for her.

Blaze took Lance into his arms and hugged him tight, crying the whole while, "I'm so sorry, my baby boy! I should never have-"

Sonic shook his head and hugged his family, cutting her off, "Shh, Blaze. It's okay. There's nothing wrong with trusting people. It turns out you put your faith in the wrong person, but that's their fault, not yours. Cause they don't know just how valuable _your _trust is." He kissed her cheek, wiping her tears with his hand.

Blaze smiled slightly, cheering up because of his words, "Oh, Sonic. Thank you." She hugged him and Lance, happy that both her boys were gonna be all right. "Lance...?"

Lance smiled, glad that she was happy again, "Yeah, mommy?"

Blaze told him, "You'll be going to work with your Daddy from now on. After this experience, I don't trust the daycares around here. Are you okay with that?"

Lance nodded, "Of course, mommy." He hugged her, "Just don't leave me alone again."

Blaze answered, "Never, Lance. I won't ever leave you alone. Well, not for a long while anyways." She kissed his cheek, hopefully restoring his faith in her.

Lance told her, "Good enough. Hey look, there's Sly, Uncle Shadow, Uncle Knuckles, Aunt Amy, Aunt Maria and the twins. What're they all doing here?"

Sonic suggested, "Maybe they came to see if you're okay, Lance. Why don't you go say hello?"

Lance nodded and ran over, "Hiya, everyone."

Amy hugged Lance, smiling, "Hey, Lance. You doing okay? I heard about what happened..."

Lance told her, "I'm good now. Mommy and Daddy helped me feel better. Hi Shads, hi Sly, hi Kotton and Kolin!" He gave them the thumbs-up and grinned. He had become close friends with them over the past few years as they had grown up fairly close in both age and location.

Sly smirked and nodded, "Hiya, Lacey." He always teased Lance about his name.

Kotton nodded, "Hello." She wasn't much of a talker.

Kolin smiled and nodded, "What's up, everyone?"

Shadow sighed, "Hi Lance. Guess what? Sly's been learning how to fly."  
>Knuckles spoke up and asked, "Oh really? How?"<p>

Shadow looked at the floor, "Rouge is teaching him. I was hoping to keep her out of his life, but...looks like it's going to be impossible."

Sonic walked over to Shadow and put a hand on his shoulder, "It'll turn out okay. After Sly is flying on his own, just tell her to buzz off. You've got Maria now, right?"

Maria smiled and nodded, "It's true, he does." She kissed his cheek.

Shadow blushed faintly, then said, "Yeah, but...it would be asking too much for her to be Sly's mother."

Maria shook her head, "No, it wouldn't Shadow. It wouldn't be improper at all. It's true he's a product of rape, but...I don't blame you for that at all. Nobody does, Shadow. You've got to move on from this, sweetheart." She hugged him.

Shadow returned her embrace with tears in his eyes, "But..."

Sonic cut him off and said, "Rouge made the bad choice, not you. You made it clear to her you weren't interested, but _she _didn't listen. Just let it go. If not for your friends, then for your son. What kind of father will you be to him if your heart really isn't in it?"

Shadow nodded, "Good point. I'll tell her to leave as soon as she starts his last flying lesson."

Knuckles smiled, glad to see that Shadow was healing, "That a boy, Shadow." He spoke up, "And Sly isn't the only one who's learning things. I'm teaching Kotton how to be a Guardian so that she can take over my duties of guarding the Master Emerald one day."

Blaze nodded, "Sonic, you ready to head home?"

Sonic responded, "More than ready."

Blaze told everyone, "We'll see you all later. We're gonna head home now."

Knuckles nodded, "Okay, see you later, Sonic and Blaze."

Shadow smirked and nodded, "See you later, faker."

Sonic laughed, "You're so weird. See you though."

Once Sonic and Blaze got home, Lance was restless and began running around the house.

Sonic sighed, "Guess I'll go keep an eye on him. You look tired, Blaze. Why don't you go to bed and I'll join you once Lance calms down and crashes for the night?"

Blaze nodded, "Okay, Sonic. Thank you, my darling." She kissed him on the cheek, "Good night."

Sonic smiled, then kissed her on the cheek too, "Good night, my love." He sighed as Blaze headed up to their room, then took off after their son, keeping pace with him easily, "Whoa, slow down there, son. What's got you so restless tonight?"

Lance shrugged, "No reason really. Just felt like running." He started running again, going at his fastest speed.

Sonic barely kept up and told him, "Okay, guess you take more after me then I thought you would." He shrugged.

A few hours later, Lance was worn out and fell to the ground panting, "Whew! That's much better. Thanks for running with me,daddy."

Sonic nodded, panting and sweating a little himself, "Yeah, no problem, son. I haven't run like that in a little bit, so it felt good. I should be thanking you." He hugged his son.

Lance smiled and returned the hug, then yawned, "I'm going to bed now, Daddy."

Sonic told him, "Okay, good night." He followed Lance up the stairs just to make sure he didn't stumble or fall on the stairs. The boy had a real tendency to be clumsy when tired.

Once Lance was in his room and in bed, Sonic tucked him in and kissed his cheek, "Good night, son."

Lance smiled and hugged him, "Good night, daddy." He lay back down in the bed and fell right to sleep.

Sonic ruffled his fur affectionately, then turned off the light and left the room, going to his and Blaze's room.

When he got there, Blaze was in the bed, seeming at least half-asleep and he crawled in next to her, putting an arm around her waist and holding her close. He whispered, not sure if she would hear or not, "Good night, my love."

Blaze answered sleepily, "Good night, darling." She put her hand on Sonic's as it touched her waist instictively, then fell into a deep sleep.

Sonic fell asleep also.

A few days passed, and Blaze was feeling no different than she had the morning after they had sex. Thinking she should at least check on the possibility of pregnancy, she quietly slipped out of bed that morning and went to get a home pregnancy test. She used it and it tested positive. She called the doctor and he set up an appointment to confirm professionally and to also set up Well Pregnancy visits.

Sonic had been asleep part of the time, but had woken up to see her talking on the phone. He put his arms around her, kissed her cheek and asked, "Everything all right?"

Blaze told him quietly, "One minute." She told the person on the phone, "So...10:00 tomorrow morning? All right, thank you. Yes. All right, bye." She hung up and smiled up at Sonic, "Good morning."

Sonic nodded, "Good morning. Everything okay?"

Blaze giggled, "You should be the first to know, since you are the father. I'm pregnant again."

Sonic gasped and hugged her tight, "Oh Blaze, that's great! So Lance is gonna get the brother or sister he wanted."

Blaze nodded, "Yes, he is."

Sonic smiled, "I'm gonna go tell him. Unless you'd rather."

Blaze shrugged, "As long as he finds out, it doesn't matter who tells him. I've gotta shower and get ready for work, so if you could tell him, that would make my life a lot easier."

Sonic nodded, "I'll tell him then." He went to Lance's bedroom door and knocked.

Lance groaned and woke up. He went over and opened the door, "Morning Daddy. You seem really happy. What's goin' on?"

Sonic answered, "You're going to be a big brother, Lance."

Lance gasped, "Mommy's pregnant?"

Sonic smiled and nodded, "Yep."

Lance hugged Sonic, "Oh Daddy, thank you! This is the best news yet!" He ran towards their bedroom, but found the door open and Blaze gone, "Where did mommy go?"

Sonic told him, "She went to get clean, but she'll be back." He picked up his little boy and kissed him on the cheek.

Blaze came out of the shower a few minutes later and grinned at them, ignoring the fact that she was clad only in a towel, "Hi, you two."

Lance smiled and squirmed, "Oh, mommy! Thank you so much!" He got out of Sonic's arms and ran over to Blaze, hugging her legs.

Blaze giggled and picked him up with one hand while holding the towel up with the other, "You're welcome, little one. So, do you wanna help us choose names? It'll give us something to do until I have to leave for work."

Lance nodded, "Yeah, yeah!"

Sonic smirked, "Just don't choose something stupid, okay? I don't think you want a sibling with a stupid name, do you?"

Lance shook his head, "Nuh-uh."

Blaze nodded, "Let's go then." She took Lance into his bedroom, "You and your Daddy stay here. I'll be right back." She set him on the bed, then ran to get some clothes on.

After she got dressed, she came back to the room and the little family discussed names for the upcoming addition to their small family.

Sonic spoke up, "Hmm...how about Annabelle? It's simple, and pretty."

Blaze nodded, "Sure. Since I chose the last name, I think you're entitled to choosing this one. Annabelle it is. Well, for a girl, anyway."

Lance suggested, "Aaron for a boy. Like the name Aaron!"

Sonic nodded, "Okay, Aaron for a boy then."

Blaze replied, "That does it for names then." She glanced at the clock, "Uh-oh, I have to go. I have to be at work in 30 minutes." She kissed Sonic on the lips and held it for a moment, then let up and kissed Lance on the cheek, "You guys have a good day and I'll see you tonight." She put on her uniform really quick, then took off for her job.

After Blaze left, Sonic went to work as well, taking Lance with him so the boy wouldn't be alone.

-9 months later-

As Blaze was heading to work one morning, she felt a sudden wetness on her thighs and gasped, knowing what was happening, since she had had a child before, "No...not now!" She winced as the first contraction came, fighting a scream.

Sonic, at work at the time, sensed that something was up and told the head coach, "I need to go. I have a family emergency."

The coach nodded, "Then go. Family always comes first here. I'll get some of the other assistants to cover for you."

Sonic told him, "Thanks." He ran to where Blaze was, finding her on the ground and groaning in pain and sweating, "Blaze, what's wrong?"

Blaze, panting, told him, "I'm going into labor, Sonic! Get me to a hospital, now!" She screamed, then groaned as another contraction came and went.

Sonic, fighting the sense of panic in him as much as he could, picked her up carefully and took off running for the hospital. When he got there, he shouted, "My wife's going into labor! Someone help me!"

A gurney was rolled up by a nurse and he placed Blaze on it.

Knuckles and Shadow showed up shortly after Sonic arrived, there for him just in case he fainted again. They would provide a strong presence for him if nothing else.

Blaze was taken back to labor and delivery, with Sonic following her every step of the way.

Once they got to that area of the hospital, the doctor and a few more nurses came in to help with the delivery of their second child.

Sonic squeezed Blaze's hand and told her, "You can do this, Blaze."  
>The doctor told her, "Okay, you're at 8 centimeters, so you're pretty close. Once you reach 10, we'll ask you to start pushing."<p>

Blaze nodded, then screamed as another contraction rippled through her, the agony unbearable.

Sonic flinched at her screaming, but held her hand. He hoped it was over soon. It was obvious to him this second delivery was being a little more difficult on her than the first.

The doctor told her, "Well that didn't take long. You're fully dilated now, so we're gonna put you in a better position, then ask you to push. Okay?"

Blaze told him, "All right."

The nurses helped Blaze push her legs back and she grasped them at the knees.

One nurse said, "Okay, at the next contraction, I need you to push, okay?"

Blaze nodded, then gasped and screamed. She pushed hard when she felt the next one come, pushing the head of the baby inside, out of her.

Sonic noticed the head and nodded, kissing her head, "You're doing great, Blaze, there's her head. Just keep going. I know you can do it."

Blaze groaned, then sat up and screamed and pushed harder at the contraction, trying to get this over with as quickly as possible. Being pregnant was fine, but the delivery? Yeah...that was the hard part. She panted as it passed, getting more tired by the second.

The doctor told her, "I see the head, shoulders and belly. Just a little more should do it."

Sonic encouraged her, "Come on, Blaze. Just a little more, and you'll get to see our little girl. You can do it!"

Blaze groaned loudly and sat up, pushing as hard as she could at the next contraction. The force of her push got the rest of the baby out and she panted, sweating profusely and her heart still racing.

The doctor cut the cord and nodded after Annabelle had cried to take her first breath, "Congratulations. You have a healthy baby girl."

Sonic kissed Blaze's forehead, "You did great, Blaze. She's adorable."

Blaze smiled, "Yeah...well, I guess we should let Lance come see his little sister since the part a kid shouldn't see is over, huh?"

Sonic nodded, "Yeah, I'll go get him." He kissed Blaze on the cheek and went to get Lance. He came back about a minute or two later.

Lance leaned over the bed to see his sibling and smiled, "Mommy, is it a boy or girl?"

Blaze answered, "It's a little girl, Lance. Your sister, Annabelle."

Lance smiled, "She's adorable, Mommy."

The rest of the day was uneventful, and Lance and Sonic went home about 7:00 PM that evening, an hour or two after Annabelle took her first breath. Sonic had to work and Lance had finally been put back in preschool, although it wasn't a daycare, it was a private academy specifically for toddlers.

The next day, Blaze was sent home from the hospital and Sonic and Lance could not have been happier. As they went inside, however, their peace did not last. Eggman flew overhead and snatched up Lance in the Eggmobile, heading to his base with the little one in tow. He smirked and said, "If you wanna see your child alive again, Sonic, you'd better come to my base."

Sonic growled and tried to follow Eggman, only to be stopped by none other than Metal Sonic. He said, "Get out of my way, Metal! I need to help my son!"

Metal Sonic told him, "I cannot do that. I must allow Dr. Eggman to escape."

Blaze asked, "Why? What does Eggman want with our son?"

Metal told her, "That is not your concern, Blaze."

Sonic answered, "Probably wants to experiment on him or something like when he was a baby. We can't let it happen though! Out of my way, Metal!" He growled, turning into Dark Sonic. His protective father instinct was in full force, and he wasn't happy his little boy was being kidnapped.

Eggman laughed, "You think you'll be able to stop me? How funny, considering that I hold the key to your future right in my own hands." He winced and shook his hand as Lance bit his finger, "You little rat!"

Lance crossed his arms, "I'm not a rat, I'm a hedgecat! Get it right, doc." He struggled, trying to get free of the claw that had grabbed him, "Daddy, Mommy! Help!"

Blaze's hands ignited, setting the blanket on Annabella on fire. Thankfully, she was used to Blaze's flames, so it didn't affect her at all when that happened.

Blaze threw a really hot fireball at Metal Sonic, melting him into a pile of blue and silver goo, "Sonic, go and get Lance!" She fell to her knees, panting from the effort of using her powers. Though she was pretty much fully recovered from having the baby, she was still quite tired from being in the hospital that long.

Sonic nodded and leapt at the Eggmobile, trying to slice through the claw holding Lance with a Spin Attack. However, it wasn't working, as the metal of the claw was a really resilient metal.

Eggman shook the Eggmobile, trying to get Sonic off.

Sonic nearly fell off, but caught himself on the extended claw mechanism, growling slightly.

Knuckles and the others came just then, to help him.

However, nothing prepared them for what was about to happen.

A moment later, Eggman activated an electrical switch and it sent a strong shock through the vehicle and anything touching it except for him. He was wearing a rubber suit.

Sonic got a nasty shock and fell off the claw mechanism.

Knuckles jumped up and caught him as he was falling and set him down on the ground, "What do we do?"

Eggman told him, "I'll tell you what you can do, Knuckles. You can kill Sonic for me."

Knuckles shook his head, "No dice. I have my own kids now and I back up Sonic one hundred percent. If not for him, my kids and I wouldn't be able to enjoy the life we have, so there."

Sonic smirked and laughed, "You just got told, Egghead. By the one person who used to be gullible to you. So...what are you going to do now?"

Eggman smirked back, "Dare you ask? Yes, you do." He flipped the switch again and shocked Lance, eliciting another scream from the small boy.

Sonic cringed and clenched his fists, "Stop! He's only a small child, Eggman!"

Eggman told him, "I'll stop if you come to my base later." He told them, "For now though, I must make preparations. Ta ta!" He flew off in the Eggmobile with Lance in tow.

Lance cried out, "Daddy! Mommy! Nooooo!"

Sonic ran after them, but then fell down, clutching his chest.

Blaze gasped, "Sonic!" She ran over to him, worried, "What's wrong?"

Shadow told him, "It might be his heart. The doctor did give him a really strong shock. He's probably having an arrhythmia."

Sonic looked confused, "What's an arithama thing?"

Shadow sighed and shook his head, "An arrhythmia, Sonic. It's when your heart gets knocked out of its usual beating pattern because of an electrical injury or some other crisis. And since you had both...it's not unthinkable."

Blaze frowned, "Will he be all right?"

Shadow told her, "Probably, but he needs to take it easy if he's going to recover."

Sonic told him, "I can't take it easy! Not as long as my son is in jeopardy!"

Blaze put a hand on his arm, "Sonic, please! I've already lost a lot of people I love in my life...I don't wanna lose you too. Please, just take it easy. We can rescue Lance later."

Sonic sighed and nodded, "Okay, Blaze." He calmed down out of necessity, as he felt like he was going to pass out any second. He then did so.

Blaze fought the urge to panic, then looked to Shadow, "What do we do?"

Knuckles answered, "We get him to a doctor or the hospital, that's what. We can't just let him lie here and die."

Shadow nodded, "Right. I'll teleport him. It'll be a lot faster than running." He picked up Sonic and teleported to the hospital with him, telling the doctors what was going on and hoping they could fix him.

For now, Sonic's future was on the line because of the arrhythmia. Would he recover? And what would become of his son, who was now in the 'tender loving care' of Eggman?


	19. Timeline for Story

Timeline of My Story

Blaze Returns; they start dating immediately (Chapter 1)

Double date with Rouge and Knuckles; it ends badly because Eggman captures Blaze (Chapter 2)

Sonic rescues Blaze from Eggman's clutches; during this they find Marine and fight together to get back home (Chapter 3)

Sonic and Blaze have a basically all-day date; Tails and Shadow go to find out about Omega, get ambushed and leave; they go back later and actually get more info; after they get back, Sonic and Blaze go on another date (Chapters 4+5)

The proposal dinner (Chapter 6)

Eggman plants fake Emeralds in Sonic's house without Sonic realizing it, and asks Blaze to watch him because he is suspicious; Blaze sees what he is doing and tries to stop it, but Eggman threatens to drown her if she says a word to Sonic; Cubot and Orbot come in and knock her flat on her rear, and start a fight with her, or try to; she gets really mad at Eggman for not letting her protect Sonic and fights back. They retreat and leave behind robots and the fake Chaos Emeralds. Sonic and Blaze share a quick kiss before Sonic goes to help Tails and Knuckles fight more robots. While he is doing that, Blaze cleans the fake Emeralds out and gets sick from it (Chapter 7)

Sonic takes Blaze to the doctor about the sickness from the fake Emeralds; she is diagnosed as having a lung infection and put on antibiotics; after a couple of weeks, their doctor says Blaze is better and she goes and makes peace with Amy; after that, she and Sonic have a romantic evening alone. The invitation to attend Knuckles' and Rouge's wedding is extended. Sonic and Blaze attend Knuckles' and Rouge's Wedding as a date; Sonic gets shot by Omega, but isn't hurt seriously; at least, not when he was first hit; he gets hit again later in the fight and is severely wounded. Blaze jumps in and melts Omega down to molten metal; Sonic is taken to the hospital to get his fractured ribs healed; Sonic is sent home, but kept under a doctor's care and under Blaze's careful eye. Sonic is pronounced healed and released from the care of the doctor (Chapter 8)

Rouge gets pregnant with twins, Kotton and Kolin and they buy a home; Sonic admits he would die to protect Blaze; Eggman attacks Knux and the pregnant Rouge in their new home, and Sonic and Blaze go to help them. On the way home from a movie date, they talk about some of the wedding details. (Chapter 9)

Rehearsal dinner; Knuckles and Rouge bring the twins, and everybody is in attendance; Sonic and Blaze have unprotected sex again that night..Sonic and Blaze's Wedding; at the reception, Knuckles is shot in the back by Metal Sonic, and everything seems to fall apart. Afterwards, they get a new home on a quiet part of Angel Island so that they can have some privacy. They spend the night in it, then head out for the Emerald Coast for their honeymoon. (Chapter 10)

Blaze gets pregnant with Lance; Blaze's pregnancy confirmed. Rouge brings up the idea of a baby shower. They come up with names for the unborn baby. Lance will be the name for a boy and Lisa the name for a girl. (Chapter 11)

Sonic and Blaze find out the baby is a boy. They have their first baby shower; Rouge cheats on Knuckles with Shadow. (Chapter 12)

Blaze goes to Shadow to find out what happened between him and Rouge while Sonic is still asleep. Shadow tells her and she is shocked that Rouge did that, but then is supportive of him. She and Sonic go tell Knuckles that Rouge cheated on him with Shadow and this causes them to fight. However, young Kotton wakes up and comes in wailing, diffusing the situation. Knuckles takes care of her and ignores Rouge, still pissed she hurt him. He packs up his things and moves to a hotel room until he can find another place to live. Rouge's heart doesn't seem to be in family life and he wants no part with someone who doesn't put their heart into things. Sonic shows up and asks Knuckles if his marriage will fall apart too. Knuckles explains that his and Blaze's love goes deeper than his and Rouge's did, so no, it won't. Sonic contemplates being a father, then heads home, reassured that he is ready to face fatherhood. He runs into Shadow on his way home. The black hedgehog is torn to pieces because of what Rouge did, but Sonic helps him feel better by appealing to his ego and bringing up that Maria wouldn't want him to be depressed by an idiot like Rouge. He goes back to Blaze, and Shadow is in a better state of mind because of the encounter. Knuckles watches the classifieds for an apartment. After searching for a while, he narrows it down to two and goes and looks at both again to come to a decision. He finally decides and moves in. Rouge applies to different places to get another job. She does this because she feels bad for Shadow and is throwing herself into work more than ever.

She also finds out that she is two weeks pregnant. The baby is without a doubt Shadow's.

Knuckles gets a job full-time at the gym he has been working at, but as an office worker instead of a trainer. The divorce goes through and Knuckles gets full custodial rights to the twins. Rouge gets a job at Grocers City as an office assistant and is still working part-time at Club Rouge. The jobs are hard, but she manages and hires male prostitutes and holds parts with her friends from work when she is off at both of them. Shadow finds out Rouge is pregnant and asks what she will do. Rouge brings up an orphanage, which prompts Shadow to adopt the kid. He will not have his child subjected to a lonely life like he was. A moment later, Blaze and Sonic show up at the apartment to offer Shadow support. Blaze goes into labor on the doorstep. Sonic picks her up and runs her as fast as he can to the hopsital. Once there, he faints out. He is woken up when a nurse comes to him and tells him that Blaze is physically ready to have the baby, but is waiting for him to show up before she pushes. Sonic quickly agrees to go in. After he is prepped to go in the birthing room, he goes in and supports Blaze as she has Lance. Once the baby is out, he kisses her forehead and she falls asleep, worn out. Lance is brought to them after a few hours of monitoring in the nursery. Sonic thanks the nurse and takes their son, who looks like a good combination of his parents. The down of his fur (covering that keeps them from being cold in the womb) is the same shade of blue as Sonic, but the fur poking out underneath is a bright indigo. When he opens his eyes, they are green. He also has peach arms and a peach muzzle. Blaze wakes up and tells Sonic that their son looks like him. Sonic says she is there too, but Blaze says nothing in response to that. He also says that they made a good thing happen. Blaze agrees and kisses him on the cheek. She yawns again, then sits up and holds her arms out to take Lance. Sonic hands him over and Blaze sings a childhood lullaby to him, though she doesn't remember all of it. Sonic asks where she heard that and she explains. Sonic puts his arm around them and smiles. (Chapter 13)

Blaze feeds Lance and Eggman shows up again, with a robot powered by Shadow's life force; the fight ends with Blaze and the young Lance being captured and Sonic being taken to the hospital (Chapter 14)

Plans are made to rescue Blaze and Lance by Tails and the others; Amy babysits the twins for Knuckles while he, Shadow and Tails go to Eggman's base. 3 hours later, the rescue is successful, but with a few setbacks; Blaze gets sick from overusing her powers and Sonic has to warm her up. They get her to the hospital and Sonic helps her to do just that. He finds out a little while later that he has recovered faster than the doctors anticipated and is released early from the hospital. Sonic, Blaze and Lance have a quiet evening as a family without any interruptions. Shadow stops by Knuckles' apartment for parenting advice. Knuckles shares some of his knowledge, then sends Shadow on his way. Birth of Shadow's son, Sly. (Chapter 15)

Shadow takes care of Sly and Sonic takes care of Lance. Eggman and Nega discuss a dimensional takeover of Blaze's dimension, since she isn't there. Blaze hears their talking and gets really scared. Sonic calms her down and asks what happened. She explains that she heard Eggman and Nega talking about taking over her dimension. Sonic asks her how sure she is and she brings up that she can't just up and leave Lance to help them. Sonic volunteers to help save her dimension. Blaze agrees to let him, but only if he gets some help. He recruits Shadow, Knuckles and Tails to help him. Marine says she wants to go too and goes with them to Blaze's dimension to help out also. (Chapter 16)

Battle for Blaze's Dimension-That night, Sonic and Tails are admitted to the hospital; Tails to ICU and Sonic just the normal recovery wing after a long, drawn-out battle against Nega, Eggman and their robots, along with a new Gemerl model. (Chapter 17)

Blaze visits Sonic with a rapidly growing Lance; the prognosis is very good, the doctors expect Sonic to be out in two days; Tails begins to recover in the ICU. Sonic released from hospital and Tails released from ICU—Tails is still in the hospital, but in much better shape than he was. Blaze lets up on her self-appointed position as Sonic's ward. Sonic and Blaze have sex to make up for the time he was in the hospital.

-Three year TIME SKIP-

They have sex again and the conception of Annabelle occurs. Blaze gets a job as a hostess at a nearby diner. Lance starts coming into his powers, which is mostly like a combination of Blaze's and Sonic's. He can run really fast and use fire, but the fire is blue. His body runs at a higher temp than his mom's. Sonic asks Lance if he wants a brother or sister. Lance excitedly says yes. Blaze takes Lance to daycare for an interview, but an incident occurs and their son is almost raped. Sonic stops it so Blaze doesn't have to leave the interview, and the daycare teacher is arrested. Second baby shower (low-key; which is why it doesn't show up in the story). Birth of Annabelle (hers is a more difficult labor, but Blaze doesn't have any complications afterwards); capture of Lance by Eggman (Chapter 18)

Blaze sneaks out of her home to rescue Lance alone in the dead of night, kissing the infant Annabelle on the cheek to tell her that she loves her in case anything happens; she looks at Sonic who is still asleep and smiles, giving him a light peck on the lips before leaving (Chapter 19)

Blaze returns with Lance, but both of them are very tired from fighting and Blaze is injured badly; when they get home, Sonic lets her see Annabelle for a little bit then rushes her to the hospital. (Chapter 20)

Blaze is released from the hospital and she and Sonic take Lance to see a kids movie along with Annabelle to celebrate her recovery; after that, they head home and put both kids to bed and have sex after they are sure both of them are asleep, but use protection; they agree to wait one year. (Chapter 21)

Lance starts kindergarten/grade school; it is an emotional moment for Blaze, but Sonic has confidence that his son will do well; Kotton and Kolin are in 1st grade by this point, but Sly is in Lance's age group (Chapter 22)

Sly's last flying lesson from Rouge; Shadow tells her to stay out of their lives now and threatens to tell her bosses what kind of life she supports with her two jobs if she doesn't. Knuckles continues to instruct Kotton as to how to be a Guardian of the Master Emerald and informs her that once she is 16, she will take his role as the Guardian; he tells Kolin that he must support his sister regardless of whether he agrees with how she protects the Emerald or not. Kolin understands and agrees. (Chapter 23)

Conception of Chad, Sonic and Blaze's third child; baby Shower #3 (Very celebratory; will include in story), and marriage of Shadow and Maria the Fox (Chapter 24)

Birth of Chad (Labor is even more difficult and Blaze slips into a coma as a result of a circulatory complication, leaving Sonic to care for their children by himself for a bit; Chapter 25)

Blaze wakes up from the coma and at first doesn't remember anything; Sonic helps Blaze restore her memory and it all comes rushing back to her and she cries, demanding to know where Chad is; he smiles and tells her he is in the nursery waiting for them (Chapter 26)

Blaze released from the hospital; Sonic, she and the kids go out for a meal to celebrate her recovery from the coma, the new family member and regaining of her memory

-1 ½ year time skip-

Eggman tries to capture Annabelle and Lance, and Sonic almost dies trying to protect them, but Shadow and Knuckles show up with their kids and send him packing; Sly is in second grade, the twins are in 3rd (Chapter 27)

Blaze goes back to work at the diner; she checks on Lance, who is 7 and in second grade now, and making a good number of friends; Annabelle is 3 and starts preschool; at the end of the day, Sonic takes his family on another outing for a picnic dinner, then they head home. After the kids are in bed, Sonic and Blaze have sex again and they fall asleep in each other's arms. (Chapter 28)

Sonic and Blaze start trying again for one more kid; Conception of Chelsea occurs here. A doctor confirms Blaze's pregnancy, but the medical community watches her entire pregnancy closely, scheduling her for more Well Pregnancy visits because of the coma she got last time she had a child; outlook seems good. (Chapter 29)

Birth of Chelsea-Blaze almost dies in childbirth and Chelsea is born with a hole in her heart; Blaze stays alive because Sonic is there and refuses to let her die, breathing for her when she needs help breathing and lightly pumping her chest when she feels like her heart is about to go. (Chapter 30)

Blaze released from the hospital; she is kept there a whole month because of her near-death in the birthing room; Sonic and everyone goes to the beach to celebrate the fact that she survived several difficult labors and just the life of their children in general (Chapter 31)

Eggman crashes their beach trip and tries to capture Chad; however, his siblings and their friends protect him and Eggman fails; he leaves and vows to be back for them with more robots (Chapter 32)

-End of story; whether or not an epilogue is written depends on number of reviews-


	20. Chapter 19

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 19

Maternal Instinct

That night, Blaze went to the hospital, in tears because of the fact that their son was still at Eggman's base and Sonic's dire condition. She had Annabelle with her, the young infant the only thing serving as her rock. She asked a nurse, "Excuse me, may I see my husband? How is he?"

The nurse told her, "He's still in serious condition in the cardiac unit. The doctor was in a couple of hours ago and said that it would take at least a day for his heart to recover from the electrical injury. You can still go in and see him, but don't stay long. He couldn't take it right now."

Blaze nodded, "Okay. Thank you." She went into the room where Sonic was quietly and sat down on a chair, sniffling slightly. She then muttered, "I don't know if you can hear me, baby, but...I love you and please come through this in one piece. I can't do this parenting thing without you." She broke down crying and buried her face in the mattress of the bed he lay on.

A little while later, a nurse came in and said, "Ma'am, I'm sorry to disturb you, but the doctor's here to see your husband again. Could you leave for a bit?"

Blaze sat up and nodded, leaving the room as the doctor came in. She hoped he could solve Sonic's heart troubles and make him better. As she had already stated, she couldn't take being a single parent.

A few hours later, the doctor came out and looked at Blaze, "Are you his wife?"

Blaze nodded, "Yes sir, that's me. How is he?"

The doctor replied, "He's recovering quite nicely. With how things are looking, we should be able to release him in a day or two."

Blaze grinned, happy tears brimming her eyes, "I knew he'd bounce back...somehow, part of me just knew it. May I go see him?"

The doctor nodded, "Yes, of course. Just make it a short visit, okay?"

Blaze responded, sighing, "Oh all right." She went into the room where Sonic was and kissed him lightly on the lips, trying to wake him up.

Sonic opened his eyes and smiled weakly at her. Although he wasn't fully recovered, a hint of color was back in his face, and he wasn't breathing nearly as hard as when he had been admitted earlier that week. He told her softly, "Hey Blaze."

Blaze hugged him gently with her free arm, then kissed him, "I've missed you so badly, Sonic. They tell me it's gonna be a day or two though..."

Sonic sighed, "Yeah...that's what the doctor said. What does he know about me, though?"

Blaze giggled, "Good point, but...still, just give yourself a little time. We don't wanna rush your recovery." She sat down next to him on the bed and handed him his daughter.

Sonic smiled down at Annabelle, happy to see her too. He petted her head and kissed her cheek, "You're so cute. Thanks for bringing her by, Blaze. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't getting lonely here..." He yawned softly, and rearranged himself so that he was lying down with his head in her lap.

Blaze blushed at the unexpected contact, but then started to pet his head, sobbing quietly as relief flooded through her. He was definitely gonna be all right if he could move around that much without getting worn out or any ill effects.

Sonic noticed her crying and reached up to wipe her tears, "Hey, come on, Blaze. Calm down, and just smile. It's all gonna be okay...and I'm okay too, so...just don't cry. Please." He held her close, rubbing her back.

Blaze gasped out of relief as she felt his arm on her back and kissed his cheek, "Oh Sonic...you're really gonna be okay."

Sonic nodded, "Yep. I'll be out of here in a jiffy. So you just go home and do whatever it is you're gonna do tonight. Because tomorrow, I look forward to being at home. I know the doctors say two days, but that's bull. I'm not staying here any more than a day. They'll have to put me in restraints to keep me here."

Blaze gasped and put a hand on Sonic's chest, silently pleading with him to stay put and recover fully. She didn't want him to almost die again. She had barely been able to function at the thought of losing him, "No, Sonic. Please, just give it the two days. I've got something I need to take care of anyways."

Sonic looked at her incredulously, then crossed his arms and sighed, "Fine...I'll stay both days if it makes you feel better. But...what are you needing to do?"

Blaze didn't wanna tell Sonic the truth because she knew he would worry about her, and in his condition, it wasn't a good idea for him to worry too much about her. She told him, "Just some house cleaning. No worries."

Sonic could tell that she wasn't telling him everything, but if she didn't wanna tell him what was on her mind, he wouldn't press her about it too much. The last thing he wanted to do was to push her away, "Okay, Blaze, if you say so. Just...don't push yourself too hard. You just had a baby after all."

Blaze responded, "I'll do my best not to, Sonic." She kissed his cheek and then hugged him, "Well, I had better get going. Annabelle needs fed and I'm sure Lance is getting anxious about where I am. I have to tuck him into bed and get her to sleep too, so...good night, Sonic."

Sonic nodded and lay down in the bed, "All right...night, Blaze." He closed his eyes and fell asleep soon after.

Blaze smiled and after he was asleep, kissed his cheek as she walked out the door, and muttered, "I love you, Sonic. Please understand that I can't put you at risk right now." She then ran home and put Annabelle in her crib. She called up Amy, wanting her to babysit for a few hours while she rescued her and Sonic's son. She waited, tapping her foot, while the phone rang.

Amy sighed and kissed Knuckles on the cheek as she heard her cell phone, "I'm sorry. I'll be right back, Knux." She walked out of the room and said, "Hello?"

Blaze spoke up and said, "Hey, Amy. Are you busy?"

Amy replied, sounding a little bit aggravated, "Not really...I was just in the middle of making out with Knuckles. Anyway, what's up?"

Blaze told her, "I'm going to rescue Lance from Eggman, and I was wondering if you would mind coming to look after Annabelle while I'm gone. I did some preliminary pumping this morning before leaving the house, so there is some of my milk in the fridge if she gets hungry. And diapers and things like that are where the changing station is. So...will you do it?"

Amy sighed and responded, "All right, I'll look after your daughter. You go and get your son back. Why didn't you...oh wait, Sonic's still in the hospital. Does he know you're going to rescue him?"

Blaze shook her head, "No...and I'd much appreciate it if you didn't say anything either. He's under enough stress right now."

Amy answered her, "...I'm not so sure about this, but okay. I'll do it. Just don't expect me to keep it from him forever. You know how I feel about not telling Sonic things."

Blaze told her, "All right. Thanks very much, Amy." She hung up the phone and went back to Annabelle's crib. She smiled and leaned over, kissing her cheek and picking her up. She hugged her and muttered, "I love you, baby. Please be good for Amy while I'm gone." She teared up a bit as she placed her back in the crib and went out to the living room to wait for Amy.

An hour or two later, Amy showed up at their place with Knuckles following her with his two kids. She told Blaze, "I don't think this is a good idea, but since I care about you like my own sister, I'll keep an eye on your daughter until you get back with Lance. Just promise me you'll come back in one piece."

Blaze smiled and nodded, "I'll do my best. Thank you so much, Ames." She hadn't realized she had used Sonic's nickname for her until it was too late.

Amy laughed and said, "Sonic's rubbing off on you. That's really good. Anyway, you're welcome. Now, get going and get your boy back. I can handle things here."

Blaze giggled lightly and nodded, "Okay. I'll see you later, Amy." She hugged the girl gently, just in case, and took off running. She would get Lance back no matter what it took. She wasn't going to let him remain in Eggman's custody. The evil genius had made one fatal error in formation of this plan: he hadn't counted on Blaze having such strong maternal instincts, and the lavendar feline would soon show him just how huge of a mistake it was to mess around with _her _child.

In the laboratory, Eggman put Lance inside of a pod-like container, and hooked him up to some electirical circuits just in case he tried to get away. If the boy was as much like Sonic as he thought, he wasn't going to be a willing guinea pig. He told the young hedgecat, "Listen here, my little purple hedgekitten. If you don't cooperate, you're going to be punished and your mommy and daddy will be really sad. You don't want that now, do you?"

Lance really loved his parents and answered, his voice slightly muffled because of the mask being placed on his mouth, "Noo, Mama, Daddy!" He struggled, in spite of Eggman's warning.

Eggman muttered under his breath, then pushed a button, shocking him, but not enough to hurt him seriously. It was just to scare him a little.

Lance yelped, "Dop it! I be good!" He remained still now, the one shock being enough to scare him into cooperating.

Eggman smirked, "That's more like it. Now, let's see.." He looked over the notes and data he had collected in his various battles with Sonic and Blaze. A child born out of a love between two such powerful creatures...he would certainly be a powerful one when he came into his powers. In fact...it appeared he already was, because he was now trying to melt his way out of the pod, his hands alight with blue fire, "Stop that right now, you infernal kitten!" He put a flameproof wall around the container, although he wasn't sure how long it would last since it was made for Blaze's fire and hers was of lower temp than her son's.

Lance laughed and said, "Dat's what I am, Eggdead!" He stopped using his powers, as he was already tiring out due to being so young. He couldn't keep his flames up for long periods of time, like Blaze, yet because he was still learning to use them.

Eggman rolled his eyes, "Well, it figures you had to stop. You're only what, 3 years old? You're not up to your mother's level on using your flame powers yet because your body is too young and infirm to sustain it for that long. Maybe in a few years you will be...anyway, let's get on with the experiment, shall we? I wanna see if you truly are your father's son like they say." He picked up the indigo hedgecat and placed him on a treadmill, then put a visor on him that had some interactive virtual reality danger situations programmed into it. He would see if the boy's speed added up to his father's.

After activating the VR helmet, Eggman smirked and nodded as results poured into his computer, "Hmm, right now he's only going 55...maybe if I up the danger level in the environment...he'll go at his top speed. Perhaps make the danger...a little more personal." He smirked and input Sonic's physical characteristics into the visor, and changed the scenario so it would look like Sonic was running off a cliff at top speed and not noticing it.

Lance whimpered as he noticed this and gasped, shouting, "DADDY!" He went at his top speed, pushing himself to and past his limits. There was a cracking sound behind the indigo hedgecat as he broke the sound barrier, and his speed topped out at 780 mph, only a little bit faster than his father.

Impressed, Eggman grinned, "Well, Sonic, looks like your progeny is well on his way to outdoing you. If only I could find some way of using him against you. Hmm..." He rubbed his hands together as many plans began to take shape in his mind. If he could use Lance against them, then no one would stop him. Not even the blue hedgehog himself! And he would finally be rid of the blue speed demon. That was peachy and all...but then who would he have to gloat to? There was a lot involved in trying to get Lance to work for him...but would the indigo hedgekitten go for it? He already seemed to be developing some morals. Of course, put Sonic and Blaze in danger and...ah ha! That was the ticket! If he told Lance that if he didn't help him, his momy and daddy would die, the boy would certainly agree to help him. In that case...he had some work to do.


	21. Chapter 20

Sonic the Hedgehog in

From Friends to Parents

Chapter 20: Protective Mother and Loving Father

That night, Blaze snuck into Eggman's base, though it wasn't an easy process. She had to fight a few robots and evade the security systems that the evil genius had put in place to stop Lance from being taken away. She arrived in the dungeon moments later, her maternal instincts spurring her on to get to her son as soon as possible. She found him in a dirty cell, chained to the wall by his neck like a dog.

Blaze gasped and ran over, worried that he had been neglected while Eggman made some form of plan to use him against them. She melted one of the bars, just so that the young hedgekitten would sense her power and know she was there. She then muttered, to keep from being overheard by Eggman or any robots that might be around, "Lance, are you okay?"

Lance sensed Blaze's power usage, and heard her voice. Smiling, the youngster turned around and gasped, shouting, "Momma, you're here!" He eagerly bounced up and down and began to talk quickly, excited that he was going to get home.

Blaze melted a few more bars and slipped into the cell, then covered her son's mouth, "Shh, quiet, honey. We don't wanna get caught." She hugged him tight once he fell quiet and looked him over head to toe. "Yeah, you're fine. Let's get going then. But be quiet...Eggman doesn't know I'm here, and it'd be better if he never knew I was. You got that, sweetie?"

Lance nodded and followed Blaze.

As mother and son made their way out of the mad scientist's base, another Metal Sonic model appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. Blaze glared, and pushed Lance behind her. She would not have her son hurt by Sonic's robot double. She then told him, "Metal, if you stand in my way of getting my son home safely, you'll be delivered to the scrap heap just like your predecessor was. Only, this time...I won't hold back!" She formed a huge fireball in her hand, protective motherly instincts at full force. She wouldn't hesitate for a moment to melt the newer model to a pile of blue and silver goo, as long as her son remained safe and unharmed. She told him, "Lance, go and hide behind those boulders in the corner. I'll take care of Metal Sonic."

Lance spoke up, "But Mom, I wanna help you! Please let me-"

Blaze shook her head, and cut him off, "No, Lance. I'm not taking a chance of you getting hurt. Go and hide. Please." She looked at her son pleadingly and longingly.

Lance responded, "Okay, Mommy. Be careful, though." He hugged her and ran to hide behind the boulders like she had asked him to, though he did peek his head out and around to watch Blaze fight Metal in case she needed help.

Blaze and Metal Sonic fought long and hard, their battle a bright exchange of fireworks as Blaze tried to melt Metal while he tried to shoot her with a laser. Although the battle wasn't going as quickly as Blaze would have liked, she had the upper hand. As the fight wore on, she began to lose her advantage, Metal's skills too close to his living double's for her to keep the edge for long.

After what seemed like an eternity, but was actually only 3 hours, Metal Sonic was defeated, but the battle was obviously difficult on Blaze, because afterwards, she fell to her knees, panting. Using her fire powers for that long was taking its toll on her body.

Lance raced over to her and said, "Mommy, let me help you." He lit up a blue flame on his hand and held it close to Blaze, but not touching her. He was afraid that he wouldn't have enough control to warm her up that way without burning her or risking his own life by giving it too much. The last thing he was wanting to do was scare his mom.

Once Blaze had warmed up enough, she stood up and smiled at her son, affectionately petting his head, "Thank you, Lance. Let's head home. I'm sure your father is worried to death about us by now. He doesn't even know I came here."

Lance smiled and nodded, "Okay, mommy." He began to run, but skidded to a halt at the end of the corridor, hearing a strange sound and noticing huge numbers of robots beginning to pile up in front of them. He turned to Blaze and asked, "Uhh, mommy...is it normal for robots to line themselves up like that?"

Blaze hissed and picked up her son, holding him close to her and explaining, "The only reason they would line up like that is if they found their prey. I guess we were it."

Eggman flew down on his Eggmobile and told her, "Oh-ho, right you are, Blaze. Tell me, does your son have the same...feelings about water as you do?"

Blaze narrowed her eyes, "What makes you think I'd tell you something like that? And let us go...or so help me, I'll make sure you no longer have that mustache." She moved her right hand slightly so that it was in clearer view of Eggman, then ignited the hand with fire, to demonstrate just how serious she was about him letting them go.

Eggman told her, "You will _not_ touch this mustache, do you hear me?! I spend far too much time on it to let it be consumed in the fires of your hatred, Blaze." He smirked and pressed a button on the Eggmobile, a loudspeaker-looking thing appearing, and then broadcasting out a strange, eerie-sounding signal that was intended to turn Lance against Blaze.

Lance yelped and began shaking in Blaze's arms, holding his head, "Mommy...make it STOP! It hurts!" He buried his face in her arm, the pain of Eggman's attempt at mind control unbearable.

Blaze yelled, "Stop this, Eggman! Lance is just a kid! He doesn't deserve any of this!" She leapt at Eggman, but he simply flew higher to escape her wrath.

After a short while of exposure to the sound, Lance blacked out for a short time, then came to. However, his eyes were glassy, unfocused and glowing red. Apparently, Eggman had perfected his mind control ray from the last time. He was now a servant of Eggman...at least for the time being. He burned Blaze, forcing her to drop him, and said, "What do you wish, Doctor?"

Eggman replied, "Finish off Blaze. She has been an obstacle for far too long."

Lance nodded automatically, "Yes, Master." He wheeled on Blaze and began to attack her.

Blaze backpedaled to dodge, but she refused to fight back. She was not going to harm her own son. She told Eggman, tears in her eyes, "You...why, Eggman?"

Eggman smirked, "Because he's your Achilles heel, that's why, Blaze. Now, Lance...do as I have commanded!"

As Lance began to advance on her, Blaze gulped and closed her eyes, summoning forth the will she needed to stand up to her son...and do as a mother should and discipline him, later. She yelled at him, "Lance! Please, don't hurt me. It's me, your mom! I love you! Please...come back!" She went closer and stroked Lance's jaw, igniting a little bit of her fire to let him feel the familiar warmth. Perhaps that would break through Eggman's brainwashing. Or perhaps just sensing the power burst alone would be enough.

Lance gasped and began quivering, having the equivalent of a seizure while his true personality began to break through. He fell to the ground and yelped in pain.

Blaze, relieved that she had gotten through to him but also worried, knelt down in front of him while this was going on, to protect him from Eggman and his robots. She fought them all by herself, though it took a lot out of her because of her earlier fight with Metal. She turned to look back at Lance and noticed that he was unconscious. Hoping that he was all right, she shook him lightly and said, "Lance...honey, please...open your eyes." She held him, motherly concern overriding all other feelings.

Smirking, Eggman took advantage of this and sent a huge robot after her that had a cannon of icy water as its weapon. He said, "Get her, my minion! Finish them!" However, he knew from experience that his robots often failed, so he took off after the robot was released.

The robot fired a ball of icy water at Blaze's back, hitting her smack between the shoulder blades. She yelped in pain and doubled over Lance, determined to protect her own son at any cost. She told him, panting, "Lance...please, wake up." She could already feel her temperature dropping, and his power was the only one that could keep it at a consistent level.

The robot stopped using its cannon and began to fire spiked missiles (A/n: Think of the robot from the OVA..the giant one that got Tails stuck. Yeah, those kinds of missiles) at the two, determined to take them out.

Blaze got hit by two of these, one through the stomach and the other went deep into her shoulder, but she still didn't budge, although she did scream in pain. Her son meant everything to her, and she knew he meant a lot to Sonic too. That was all the reason she needed to risk her life.

Lance was awakened by Blaze's scream and looked up at his mom. At seeing how seriously hurt she was, he gasped and teared up, "Momma! Hang on, we gets you back!" He leapt out of her arms and to his feet, not seeming to have any side effects from the mind control ray. He looked around for Eggman, but the mad scientist was gone. Although, he had left them a robot to fight. Sighing, Lance told Blaze, "Mama, let me fight 'em. You sick and hurted." He had also felt how much lower her body temperature was than normal. That had probably also served as a wake-up call.

Blaze smirked and nodded, "Okay, let's see what you've got. Just let me know if you need help." She would stay nearby of course, and leap in if necessary, but ultimately, she was going to leave this fight to him, since her body temperature was still dropping and she was still hurt pretty badly. After a matter of minutes, Blaze blacked out, shivering.

Lance gulped and finished off Eggman's robot as quickly as he could, which wasn't that far off from how fast his father would have done it. He went over to Blaze and ignited his blue flame again, trying to help her regain enough strength to at least regain consciousness. He sniffled and teared up, "Momma? Pwease..."

Blaze woke up a moment later and slowly sat up. She hugged her son gently and told him, "Thank you. Let's get back...as I was saying before...your dad is probably worried."

Lance replied, "Maybe, mommy...but, shouldn't we rests first? You hurt."

Blaze told him, "And you've been using your powers when you're not used to them yet. Good point. We'll rest a little bit, but then we _have _to leave here. I don't want your dad to run in here and see me like this." She sat down, showing that she was willing to relax for a little bit.

Lance responded, "Otay, mommy." He lay on her lap and cuddled close, trying to help her stay warm and also warm her up. "Night night." He knew that only his power would be helpful to her. Well, his and Annabelle's...maybe, but they didn't know for sure yet if she would get the gift of flame like Blaze had or not. She was far too young for them to be able to tell.

Blaze smiled and yawned, her son's incredibly warm body temperature making her feel better. She drifted off to sleep.

After about an hour and a half, Blaze and Lance both woke back up and resumed their journey home. They thankfully didn't run into any more resistance from Eggman, and reached Sonic and Annabelle without further incident.

However, Blaze was still injured from fighting the uber-robot that Eggman had used on them and fell, blood pouring from her wounds.

Sonic gasped and ran to her side, still holding Annabelle, "Blaze!"

Blaze told him, "Sorry to have worried you...but I made it back, and...as you can see, I've got Lance too."

Sonic nodded, but crossed his arms and glared a little at her, "Why didn't you tell me you were going after Lance? I would've come along to help you, you know that."

Blaze responded, "Because you were still having your heart problem, Sonic...I didn't want to cause you anymore undue stress. I'm sorry." She winced in pain and leaned into him, though she was careful not to knock Annabelle out of his arms.

Sonic held her up as best he could and said, "No...it's all right, I should be the one apologizing. You did what you thought was right and I can't stop you from doing that. But...it still would've been nice if you told me the truth rather than covering up what you were doing with a lie. You could've easily been killed, and where would that leave Lance, Annabelle, and me?"

Blaze teared up and nodded, seeing his point, "Without a mother. I'm really sorry. I won't do this again." She hugged him and kissed his cheek, knowing they worked better as a team anyway. She just hoped Sonic would forgive her.

Sonic kissed her on the lips, then broke it and said, "I forgive you, but please...don't _ever_ lie to me again. Even if you don't think I'll like what you have to say, just tell me everything. I'll listen."

Blaze responded, "Okay, you've got it." She hugged him, then winced and began to feel more light-headed as the blood loss hit her hard and fast. She told Sonic, "Sonic...let me see Annabelle...please."

Sonic nodded, "Sure." He held the young infant close to her, but still held onto Annabelle. With how shaky Blaze was on her feet, she might end up dropping the baby, and he wasn't going to have any of that.

Blaze smiled and stroked Annabelle's jaw gently with her finger and told her, "Hi, honey." She then blacked out.

Sonic handed Annabelle over to her brother and told him, "Go put Annabelle in her crib. I've gotta get your mom to the hospital."

Lance responded, "Otay, daddy. Me come too?"

Sonic shook his head, "No. I need you to stay here and look after your sister. You've seen what mommy and I do when we're taking care of her, right?"

Lance nodded, "Yeah, Daddy. Otay...I try. Pwease...make sure mommy gets okay."

Sonic replied, "The doctors will do everything they can, Lance."

Lance responded, "I know dey will...but I still scared."

Sonic hugged him tentatively with one arm and told him, "Yeah, you're not the only one. Oh, and call your Aunt Amy. Let her know that she needs to stay with you until I can get back."

Lance obeyed, telling him, "Of course, Daddy. I love Aunt Amy! She so fun! Sees you later!" He ran up the stairs with Annabelle in his arms and did what he could to place her in the crib, reaching up slightly to let down the right-side rail. After putting her down, he put the rail back up and went to call Amy.

After finding out what was happening, Amy replied, "Okay. I'll be right over, Lance. Don't go anywhere, okay?"

Lance nodded, "Okey. Thanks, Aunt Amy."

Amy responded, "You're welcome." She hung up the phone and told Knuckles what was happening, then left and went to Sonic's, followed by Knuckles. Hopefully, things would resolve soon and Sonic and Blaze would be able to enjoy a peaceful life with their children, unhindered by Eggman or anyone else. It would take a while, of course, but it could happen.


End file.
